


A Love Like Yours

by Formysakeamaryllis



Category: Harry Styles - Fandom, One Direction (Band)
Genre: Angst and Feels, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, F/M, Fluff
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-04-01
Updated: 2020-11-16
Packaged: 2021-03-01 00:07:38
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 17
Words: 41,721
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23425987
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Formysakeamaryllis/pseuds/Formysakeamaryllis
Summary: Small teenage Kitten has been in the snow for god only knows how long. No family. One friend she can't reach. No one to care about her...until a woman stumbles upon her and insists on taking her in. Kitten then finds herself falling for her son with the kind eyes and gentle touch.
Relationships: Harry Styles/Original Female Character(s), Louis Tomlinson/Original Female Character(s)
Kudos: 10





	1. Snowflakes

It was cold, it was beyond cold, it was freezing. How she'd managed to survive here since August she had no idea. How she was going to continue to survive she didn't know. She'd sent her best friend text after text, how she still had cell phone service was beyond her. There was part of her that assumed she was still given her the privilege because her parents were stupid and simply forgot to shut the line off, after all they weren't terribly bright people. They shipped a 16 year old girl off to London with a suit case full of nothing and a promise that if she came back they'd kill her. A girl they'd never given a name, a girl they'd given birth to but never treated like a daughter or cared for in any capacity.

In fact, they had not only neglected her in form of isolation but they'd abused her. They'd taken away her every form of identification as a person. They'd abused her every sense, they'd beat her, they'd starved her, they'd tried to killer her, they'd allowed her brother and others to violate her. It was her refusal to submit that finally pushed them to send her away with threats to her life, they'd been hoping to kill her or force her to kill herself so they could magically come across this 'trouble misfit' in their life and been 'unable to save her' from herself. Thus for bringing more profit to their already wealthy selves.

So to say her life had been difficult up until this point would be an understatement. She was used to it though to a certain degree, the cuts on her arms were a testament to the fact that she had learned a coxed way to cope. There had been a small saving grace in her life. When she was 12 years old, a young girl named Alice had been visiting the house with her parent's who were meeting with this nameless girl's famous parents to strike a deal. Alice had gone wandering around the house, sticking her nose where it shouldn't be and she'd stuck her face under a door where this girl had been locked in. She'd stuck a note under the door and they'd begun talking that way. They traded phone numbers.

When Alice found out her best friend was nameless, she'd given her a name. A special name, one that fit her just like the girl had given her. She called her Kitten, it was the only name she'd ever known, it was the name she went by now. As a 16 year old, it was what was said on the ID she'd been given to get through airport security by herself, last name left off because as far as she was concerned she never had one. She didn't want the one she had. Kitten called Alice, Ace because Alice was what the world knew her by. See, Alice was abused too used by her own wealthy family as a promo tool often abused, neglected and starved. Told what to say, when to say it, how to dress, how to act and if she didn't behave by the strict set of rules in front of the camera she was starved. She lived most of her life in a locked bed room with a TV, a bathroom and a cell phone.

The girls were closer than any set of friends could ever be considered. Alice was forced to travel a lot so they hadn't been around each other physically much in these last 4 years but that didn't matter. Kitten was hopeful one day they'd get to meet up, it wasn't looking like that though. She was freezing to death (literally,) in a town in London and Alice was in Italy. Alice was still trying to convince Kitten to tell her where she was but Kitten didn't know where she was and even if she did she didn't want Alice running away and risking getting hurt. Alice had a future, Kitten didn't...or well it didn't look like she did.

/Ace I think I just snorted a snowflake? Is that a thing?/ she texted trying to lighten the mood even if she'd just told her best friend she was pretty sure she was dying. Kitten made a promise to her best friend that she'd leave a note in her backpack which would be on her body when she was found, saying 'call Alice Chambers' knowing the name would get tv attention and Ace would be notified of her passing.

/It's water, I'm not sure. Isn't there some place you can go to get warm? Please?/ Alice begged and Kitten sighed looking around. She could see her breath and snow but that was pretty much it, there wasn't really many options for her.

/Ace..../ Kitten groaned quietly as the cold bit at her face. She wasn't even sure if she could make it to her feet. She grabbed her backpack and crawled a few feet from where she had been to seek more shelter but she was soaked from the snow already. Further shelter was pointless, it didn't matter.

"Oh my god," She was startled by a sudden gasp. "Oh my dear," the woman was pretty. Old enough to be Kitten's mother dark brown hair pretty brown eyes and the snow was quickly falling on her the wind whipping around her. Kitten looked around mildly confused as to what the woman was gasping about. "Come on, come inside, the bakery is nice and warm. You need to get warm." Kitten was still confused. She hadn't had food in a few days, she was freezing and thirsty and tired.

"Who me?" She croaked out sending out a text to Ace /not dead. Some lady just found me. I'll text you in a bit ok? <3 I love you/ she promised before tucking the phone into her backpack and looking back at the woman confused.

"Yes, yes you. Of course, come on dear. You look freezing. You're shaking like a leaf!" The woman seemed so worried and Kitten didn't know she was shaking, she had known the first few times she started shaking but she'd become so numb out of desperation to survive. Kitten made an attempt to stand up only to hit the ground again confirming that she could most definitely not get up on her own two legs and walk anywhere.

"Um," Kitten looked at the woman before trying to stand up again figuring the woman was probably going to leave her to die in the snow if she couldn't at least get to her feet. She was used to that, however the woman didn't leave her. She did very much the opposite, the woman rushed forward startling Kitten and leaned down slowly helping the 16 year old up off the ground. It was hard not to flinch away from the woman's kind hands her skin burned with what was probably frostbite. She wondered if she'd die if they warmed her up to quickly, she though she remembered reading something about that online.

"You poor thing," the woman helped her a few more feet and then into a building that had been hidden by the snow which is why Kitten hadn't seen it in the first place. The woman pushed the door open and it was fairly quiet, a few voices coming from the back but no one up front and it smelled good but Kitten's stomach lurched any way. She hadn't had food in awhile, eating was always a challenge. The woman eased her into a chair and there was a large part of her that wasn't quiet sure what to do with herself. Although she hadn't wanted to die outside she was somewhat terrified of people thanks to the home she was raised in and the few run ins on the street that she'd had. Most of them had spit in her face or kicked dirt her way.

"Anne! I was going to give Harry a ride, you didn't have to come out in the storm!" An elderly woman appeared from the back doorway giving the kind woman who was quickly shedding her jacket to give the 16 year old girl. "What are you taking your jacket off for love? It's freezing out ther...." the woman stopped. "Anne, dear, the shop is closed she can only be in here a few minutes." Kitten officially wanted to cry.

"Please, please. I swear I won't steal anything." Kitten begged the shop owner not even sure what she was asking for at this point. "Please just an hour maybe two. I swear, I'm just I'm not ready to die yet." She cried, not sure if she was actually crying at this point, not even sure if she had tears in her body.

"That's a bit dramatic don'tcha think?" The woman asked snidely and Kitten set her head down on the table in defeat.

"Patty," Anne scolded the old lady. "Do you not see her?! She's a child! Her lips are blue! I found her outside in the snow! She can't even stand up on her own!" She sounded so heated at the elderly lady and Kitten was a bit shocked but she was still convinced at this point she was going back outside to die in a few minutes. "Harry! Let's go!" She shouted and Kitten flinched the sound much to loud on her frozen ears.

"Anne, I know you are into charity work but she could be an adult or a runaway. You don't know what you are getting into." Patty continued to 'educate' Anne one what a problem Kitten's poor 16 year old self could be on her. It wasn't like Kitten was either of those things. She wasn't an adult or a runaway. She was an abused child who just wanted to live long enough to see her friend again maybe live long enough to turn 18.

"Please...Just a few more minutes. Stay a few more minutes. I can't get Alice's hopes up only to go die outside ten minutes later. Please." Kitten was begging Anne now. Anne looked down confused at Kitten not understanding anything about Alice but also knowing she'd seen Kitten attempting to type on a phone earlier.

"Shh, Shh. It's alright love. You're coming home with me. Tomorrow when the roads open up I'll get you to a hospital." Anne said gently touching Kitten's hair and Kitten picked her head up off the table looking at the woman in disbelief but a gratefulness that she couldn't even begin to describe. She wanted nothing more then a goodnight sleep (but she was mildly afraid if she slept she'd die.) a warm place to sit and maybe some crackers and tea but she felt like it was inappropriate to ask, she felt like such a burden on people.

"Thank you Barbra! These cinnamon muffins are amazing. Mum, she taught me how to make these amazing..." A young boy stepped out from the back with a box of what smelled like fresh muffins and Kitten's eyes widened she had never smelled something so completely delightful in her life. "You want a muffin?" The boy asked quickly realizing Kitten was eyeing the muffins. He didn't bother to ask who she was or what she was doing inside. She felt a weird sensation in her gut when she made eye contact with him. She had never felt it before, something akin to fireworks she couldn't describe it she'd have to ask Alice about it later.

"Please. Please," Kitten weakly held out her shaking hands and Patty sighed as another elderly lady stepped out from the back her hand over her heart gasping at the sight of her. Clearly Patty was alone in the desire to kick Kitten out of the bakery so quickly. Harry slowly sat down across from Kitten opening the box and pulling out a muffin setting it in front of her. Her fingers were quick to pick off small pieces, they were the only part of her body she could make work pretty well and that was because even when she lost feeling she trained them to text to keep Ace in the loop. Getting the food to her mouth was a different story, it was slightly embarrassing.

"I'm Harry," The boy introduced himself and Kitten tried to smile as she finally got a bite in her mouth slowly chewing and swallowing. The food a little hard to get down just because it had been days since she'd eaten but it was soft and easy to swallow. It tasted so good. "What's your name?"

"Kitten," She mumbled around the muffin. He and his mother both looked at her quizzically. She remembered suddenly that, kitten wasn't a normal name to have. Just because it was her normal didn't mean it was normal. She reached back clumsily and dug around in her backpack finding her ID and handing it to Harry to prove it was her name.

"Huh, unique. I like it." Harry smiled handing the ID up to his mom. Kitten picked a a bit more of the muffin off before her stomach decided it was done. It hardly looked like she'd eaten anything. "Done already?" He frowned when she pushed the muffin away when it seemed like she'd hardly touched it.

"m' full. It's great though. I'm so sorry, I just..I'm full please don't be mad." She murmured quickly trying to apologize for the fact that her stomach couldn't handle food because she lived on whatever scraps she could salvage off the top of trash cans that so many shops just throw out.

"I'd never be angry over you being full," Harry smiled reaching over and touching her cold hand. the warmth of his hand burned a little on her cold skin but it felt reassuring and sent the first spark of life through her that she'd felt in 4 months. He had this tender look on his face, this sweetness that Kitten hadn't ever really witnessed before. She was completely foreign to the kindness he was extending and what she was sure was his mother. "Are you ok?" He asked softly as his mother talked quietly to Barbra looking over the ID she'd been given from the young girl. "You look really cold and sick..." he frowned.

"'s really cold outside." She paused looking down at the table. "'m really sick I think...I don't know, people who've been in the snow and don't eat get really sick right?" Kitten couldn't bring her self to look up at him as she asked the question. It wasn't like she knew the boy and divulging that she'd been in the snow a long time could convince him to tell his mother not to bring her home with them and allow her some warmth.

"I think so, I know your body isn't supposed to go more than a week with out food and the news said someone froze to death when they got trapped in their car over night last night..." Harry frowned his hand still resting on the table in front of hers. Her eyebrows drew together, she'd been outside in the snow much longer than one night and she hadn't eaten in more than two weeks. How had someone died over night? Sure it was cold but maybe she was just used to it...

"I guess Ace was right," Kitten stuttered. Alice was often right, worrying about Kitten freezing to death or starving to death. She begged Kitten to find some kind of shelter from the freezing temperatures if she could for even just a few minutes. Kitten never understood why even if she knew she needed too, she never thought it was that serious. Even if she was dying, it seemed like it was only that way because she had been exposed to the cold for so long not because the temperatures were so dangerous at night.


	2. Rescue Me

"Who's Ace?" Harry nudged her hand and Kitten looked up at him confused for a minute. Again her brain was slow to catch up with everything else going on. It had been starved of food and water and warmth, it wasn't like she could keep up if she wanted too.

"Uh, my best friend. She's not from around here...I'm not really...from around here either?" Kitten didn't really know how to continue to answer questions with out giving away to much information. She didn't want him to change his mind about taking her home. She needed to get warm, she needed to find some way to live and if his mother was willing to offer that to her she owed Alice that much.

"I can tell, you have an American accent. It's cute, " Whatever blood she had in her rushed to her cheeks as she blushed. Cute, he had called her cute. She hadn't even used her voice in awhile so she wasn't sure what it would sound like when it came out of her. American or half dead British, she hadn't cared. She didn't think she'd ever use it again.

"Alright Harry, Kitten, let's get you two back to the house. Kitten darling let's get you warmed up. The roads are closed tonight but I called the hospital and the road to the hospital should be open by tomorrow morning." The woman who had pulled her out of the snow came back to the table and Kitten nodded clumsily. She probably did need medical attention but she didn't favor the idea of needing it, she was scared they'd know who she was. That they'd call her parents and make her go home. Harry stood up grabbing her back pack and holding his hand out to help Kitten up.

Unfortunately when Kitten made another attempt to use her legs as she took his hand and get up, she fell onto the floor nearly hitting her head on the chair. She felt horridly embarrassed that her body wouldn't work like she wanted it too. Everything felt frozen and broken all at the same time, nothing was working like it needed to or like a normal body would. She was sure she looked completely pathetic and stupid in front of the boy who had just called her cute and the woman who had pulled her out of the snow so kindly. Again, she wanted to cry but as she made an attempt no tears would fall, even her tear ducts too frozen to shed water that her body didn't have.

Slowly Harry leaned down and pulled her up with a little help before his mother. They helped her put her back pack on her shoulder and then out to the car. Once they were inside of the car it was a very slow drive home to make sure there was no accident. Kitten remained silent ashamed and still frightened that if she did or said something wrong they would send her back home. She wasn't sure that they would want her if they knew who she was or what was really wrong with her. It took a few minutes to help her into the house and once they did they immediately helped her into a bathroom. Harry's mother began to run a warm bath shooing her son out of the bathroom.

"Let's get you warmed up sweetheart," Anne's voice was so calming and reassuring. "Harry's older sister Gemma has some clothes you can borrow." she smiled but Kitten felt uneasy as she pealed her pants off leaving her underwear on not comfortable taking it off in front of a stranger. It was taking her shirt off that would be the hardest. The cuts that lined her arms would scare anyone, and though the last few were at least two weeks old and done just to make sure she really still was alive it could make them kick her out. Anne waited patiently.

"You're gonna hate me..." Kitten mumbled unable to stop her self and the cold chattering of her teeth. Hesitantly she pealed her top off exposing the harm she'd done to herself, the scars, the healing cuts, the horror that was her body. Anne didn't gasp, she didn't visibly react at all, instead she kindly stood up and helped the girl to her feet and into the warm bath.

"How long have you been alone?" She asked sitting on the side of the tub. Kitten rested in the warm water finally feeling like the slightest bit of warmth even if it stung a bit. She looked up at the woman before quickly looking away.

"s' December right?" Anne nodded. "4 months...you wont send me back will you? Please...I know you don't know who I am...I know I look like trouble waiting to happen but I promise I'm not. I won't stay, I'll leave just don't send me back." She begged tears finally starting to fall down her face now that her body was beginning to circulate the blood that she needed too.

"Love, you are bruised from head to toe, wherever you came from was harming you. I would never send you back." Anne promised. "I don't want you to go anywhere. Sweetheart, you are 16 and alone god only knows how long you've been devoid of shelter and food.."

"Four months, I mean I think a 2 weeks-ish for food but...I haven't had shelter at all." She said quickly. "I snuck into a few businesses to charge my phone so Alice didn't worry." It sounded bad, it sounded like she'd broke and entered into places which wasn't quite the case but she hadn't exactly been a welcome guest in the places. She'd really needed to charge her phone though, it was important to maintain a charge on her phone to keep in contact with Alice.

"May I ask who Alice is?" Kitten smiled, she loved Alice. She loved talking about Alice but she never talked about Alice's last name she didn't want people to know Alice by her last name. She didn't want anyone contacting Alice's parents with concerns about Kitten.

"She's my best friend, the reason I keep fighting to live so hard. We met when I was 12." Kitten giggled slightly at the memory. "Ace was sticking her nose where it didn't belong, just like always. Found my cell/room and slipped a not under the door after trying the handle. She gave me my name." She leaned her head back against the tub looking at the wall. "I didn't have one until she gave me one, she's the only person that's ever loved me."

"She sounds like an absolute doll." Anne smiled leaning down and cupping some water in her hands gently washing it over Kitten's hair before grabbing the soap and beginning to lather that into the 16 year old's hair as well. It was hard for Anne to imagine a parent never naming their child but that wasn't the question first and foremost in her mind right now. "May I ask if you ran away? I promise I won't send you back." Anne stroked her fingers through the young girl's hair washing the traces of soap from her hair.

"I uh, I didn't run away. I was sent away," Kitten answered slowly. "They've never wanted me, on my 16 birthday they bought me a one way plane ticket and a threat that if I were ever to tell who I was or come back they would see to it that my life were ended." It didn't hurt her as much as it should have to talk about her family wanting her dead. That her family cared so little about her life that they sent her away to die on her own, just to keep their names out of bad press."They wanted me to die years ago but I'm kind of a cockroach."

"I'm both impressed and horrified. Impressed by how strong you are to survive 4 months on your own in the harsh London weather at 16 and to survive whatever abuse you were suffering from. Yet, completely horrified by any parent that sends their child away to die, or wants them to die and brands them as a cockroach then they don't." Anne said softly helping Kitten sit up as the water began to turn chilly. She helped wrap the girl in a towel and once the towel was securely around her waist Kitten slipped her underwear off and let it fall to the floor.

"That's why Ace named me Kitten. She said I reminded her of one and said I had 9 lives." Kitten hummed appreciating the kindness that was being extended in her direction by this woman who clearly seemed interested in caring about her even if Kitten had never been cared for a day in her life. "I guess money talks? They had the kids they wanted and I was an unfortunate...mishap? or I guess I just turned out to be a disappointment at 1? I don't know. Maybe they needed something to use as stress relief," she mumbled more to herself then to Anne. She did spend quite a few nights wondering why her family had ever had her if they hadn't wanted her or what had gone so wrong.

Alice clued her in that there was an article around the time that she was born that her mother 'miscarried' so the pregnancy was probably for publicity. Kitten and her spent a few nights playing with the idea that her parents had her for a punch bag and an abuse target for her older brother especially. A stress ball for him to use and abuse as he saw fit, for anyone who they deemed fit to keep her being a secret to use and abuse as they'd like. As she got older they got tired of having to worry that she might escape and tell the world so they tried a million ways to kill her with out actually getting their hands dirty. They wanted to make her kill herself or starve her to death so that they could play the 'tragic orphaned taken in misfit' card to the media. Kitten just never died. No matter what they did.

"How parents could ever treat a child the way yours clearly treated you is completely despicable." Anne said softly as she helped Kitten dry her hair. There was a knock on the door and then a female with dirty blonde hair walked in with a pile of clothes in her hand. Kitten quickly hugged her arms to her chest so the female wouldn't see her arms not wanting who ever the woman was to see and start screaming or hurling abuse at her. "Kitten, this is Gemma my eldest daughter and Harry's older sister."

"I didn't think Harry was serious when he said her name was Kitten." The girl chuckled setting the clothes on the counter. "I thought he was pulling my chain trying to get me to come in here and make me a fool of myself." Anne shook her head handing the clean underwear to the young girl but Kitten looked at Gemma to scared to move her hands away from her body to get dressed with someone else in the room. She didn't want to be judged.

"Harry's really nice," Kitten's teeth started to chatter again though she wasn't sure if they'd stopped. Anne looked over at her daughter and then at Kitten perching herself infront of Kitten providing enough of a shield for Kitten to get the underwear up her legs and then the sports bra on and pull the long sleeve shirt on her body. It was a little baggy but it was nice and soft on her skin, once the shirt was on Anne grabbed the pants and helped ease Kitten into them with out making her get off the toilet. Gemma let out a somewhat louder chuckle startling Kitten.

"My brother's weird that's what he is." Gemma shook her head and Anne shook her head. Kitten frowned.

"He's not weird..." Kitten said almost defensively. "He's really nice and he makes really good muffins." Anne smiled kindly at her and Gemma huffed and rolled her eyes.

"He's my little brother and trust me he's weird. You've known him for like at max an hour give him time you'll learn." Gemma hummed.

"He's not weird." Kitten insisted frustrated tears built up in her eyes and she sniffled rubbing at her eyes with her hands. She didn't exactly know why she was getting so upset but she didn't like this girl who identified herself as Harry's sister as weird even if it wasn't exactly an insult. Kitten felt like it was an insult because all Kitten had called harry was nice. Gemma had countered with he was weird so it had felt like an insult.

"Mum, dinner's ready...is she ok?" Harry popped his head into the bathroom frowning when he heard Kitten's sniffling. She hadn't been crying when he left her with his mother, then again he wasn't sure she could cry when he left her with his mum. She'd pretty much been an iceical, she looked a bit warmer now but he didn't like the tears on her face.

"m' fine m' sorry." Kitten sniffled looking over at Harry and then at Gemma who was completely confused. The 16 year old's lips were still blue and Gemma hadn't noticed that before, it was startling. That wasn't a color that was meant to be on anyone's lips.

"Holy shi....crap. You're lips are blue." Gemma pointed out and Kitten's hand quickly covered her mouth and Harry hissed at his sister. Kitten's whole body was shaking and she was finally starting to feel ill now that she was starting to get feeling back in her body. She didn't want to die but it felt like every ounce of her body was fighting to shut down and Gemma in here pointing out that her lips indicated a lack of oxygen flowing through her body was not helpful.

"Gemma, darling that's not very helpful." Anne sighed as she leaned down helping Kitten slowly off the toilet. Kitten nearly fell even though she was being held up she was that sick and weak at the moment it seemed like she was going to lose control of her body completely. Harry rushed past his sister helping his mother steady Kitten and as soon as she felt his hands on her ribs she felt a rush of blood surge through her again just like the first time he'd touched her. His mother noticed the way she seemed fight a lean a bit into Harry's grip and a light flashed through the girls grip.

Kitten couldn't explain it, the way his hands on her made her feel like she could fight longer. Even if it was just a little bit longer. She looked at Anne worried she would be offended or furious that Kitten had some kind of positive reaction to Harry. Kitten didn't even know what the feeling was or how to describe it, so how to make sense of any of any of what was going on was exhausting. Anne simply smiled and kissed her forehead, she knew that look but for now she was just going to let it be.

"Would you like to lay down sweetheart?" She asked slowly and Kitten quickly shook her head. She was terrified if she laid down or even closed her eyes for a second she'd go to sleep and never wake up. Anne nodded they weren't quiet sure what they'd do with her but they weren't going to make her go lay down if that wasn't what the girl wanted to do and it turned out that wasn't at all what she wanted.

Kitten remained awake crawling from spot to spot on their living room floor every time her eyes would start to droop she'd move around again. Harry stayed awake with her and he tried to carry a conversation with her but she was much to tired and fighting to hard to have a conversation with him. When morning came and the roads had been cleared they loaded her into the car and drove to the nearest hospital as quickly as they safely could. When they carried her into the nurses station the nurses ushered them all back to a room immediately wasting no time in getting Kitten laying down on a cot.


	3. What's In a Name

"Do you want me to tell your friend you're ok and in the hospital?" Harry asked as she laid on the bed. A nurse was talking quietly to his mother talking about an Iv and Kitten started to sniffle and cry. He grabbed her hand and rubbed his thumb over her hand, she seemed to calm down almost immediately. She turned so she was facing him, she nodded a little bit. They'd brought her backpack with her and she'd had it with her last night but she hadn't gotten on her phone at all, he assumed it was because she was too sick to be able to.

"Please, will you hold my hand until they're done with the needles. M' scared of 'em." She mumbled and Harry smiled gently at her.

"I'll hold your hand the whole time you're in the hospital if it'd make you feel better." She blushed and a tiny smile crept up onto her lips. "You know it's really cute when you blush like that." He complimented as the nurse came back in with the IV kit and gently rolled Kitten's shirt up not looking shocked at the cuts. He figured his mother probably warned them about the cuts on her arm. His mum had pulled him aside and told him about them the other night so he wasn't shocked when her sleeves were rolled up either.

"You're really nice." Kitten's voice was soft and a little hesitant, she whined when the IV was put in but relaxed once it was in and the nurse started fluids and what was probably pain medication if Harry had to guess. He bet Kitten was probably in a lot of pain, he didn't know it wasn't like they'd talked to much about her pain level. He just knew she was freezing cold and her lips had been blue and she hadn't eaten in awhile. He reached up and brushed his fingers against her cheek.

"I think you're really nice too." He didn't know how to comfort her other than to hold onto her hand and try and make idle conversation with her. "When's the last time you slept?" Kitten hummed quietly trying to think of the last time she actually slept.

"I dunno, I've been so cold. I thought I was going to die if I fell asleep and now that I'm warm everything hurts so bad." She told him as if it were a secret but the nurse was taking notes but not asking direct questions. Harry wondered if his mother had told the nurse to be a little softer and maybe not ask direct questions if she didn't have too. He was 15 (almost 16 give him a month ok) though how was he supped to know what to ask her.

"Can you answer some questions from the nurse?" She looked at Harry before looking over at the nurse nervously.

"Only if you hold my hand." He nodded a silent promise that he wouldn't let go. He hadn't been lying to her earlier when he'd said he'd hold her hand the whole time she was in the hospital if that would make her feel better. It wasn't like he wanted to let go of her hand any way. He leaned down with his other hand and pulled her back pack into his lap and dug through her backpack finding her phone, he turned it on figuring he could text her best friend while she was being asked questions.

"How long have you been out in the cold dear?" The nurse began her questions.

"I don't know I've been outside since August...I don't know when I last ate...they fed me yesterday but I threw it all up. I had some tea last night but that's the first hydration I've had that wasn't like dirty snow?" It seemed like she was answering whatever questions she could get out of the way first. Harry cringed at the idea of her needing to melt down and drink dirty snow because it was all she could get her hands on. It broke his heart, she was his age, she shouldn't be struggling and left to die the way she was it wasn't fair. He wanted to hunt her parents down and charge them with whatever...he didn't know much about the law...he was a 15...almost 16 year old boy. (hey he'd be 16 in a month ok.)

"Wow, ok. What's your name sweetheart?" Kitten stared at the nurse and it took her a few minutes before she answered.

"Kitten."

"You're birth name sweetie, I need to look up medical records. I promise we aren't going to send you back to your parents if that's what you're worried about. Here in the UK most 16 year olds are leaving home any way. It's ok." The nurse said softly but Kitten still just stared at the nurse her hand tightened in Harry's though.

"I don't have one though. I don't have a birth name, I don't have any medical records." She was starting to get upset and Harry glared at the nurse feeling protective of her.

"That's silly love, Everyone has a birth name. Parents are required by law to name their children, everyone has medical records. Again the law requires it, I just need to know for your sake." The nurse pressed.

"But I don't have one!" Kitten cried her voice cracking. "You don't understand! I don't have one! They gave birth to me at home! I've never been to a hospital! Not even when I nearly bled out on the floor! Not when I was thrown down the stairs. Never!" Her voice was going in and out of making noise as she cried nearly shouting and harry squeezed her hand soothing her as best he could. She looked at Harry tears rolling down her cheeks "Call Alice, please. Alice will tell her."

"I'm really not trying to upset you. I just need to understand what's going on and if this Alice can tell me the same I'll back off." The nurse sighed and Harry shook his head pissed off as he clicked on Kitten's contacts there was only one contact and it read 'Ace' he hit the call button. IT rang once.

"Kitten, kit, babe, oh my god are you alive?" the voice that flooded over the phone was panicked and scared and sounded as young as Kitten was. (Alice was after all only one month older than Kitten any way.)

"M alive. m' in a hospital. A nice lady and her son found me and brought me home...and then to a hospital..."

"Good you need to be in a hospital. You were snorting snowflakes last night, wait am I on speaker phone?" The female asked and Kitten nodded almost as if the girl on the other end could see her.

"Yeah, I'm Harry and my mum Anne is the one who found Kitten in the snow. We are keeping her by the way just in case you are worried about that." Harry promised and Alice chuckled slightly, kitten couldn't help but smile even as she sniffled trying to hide the fact that she's crying.

"Is she crying, are you crying Kitten?" Harry was shocked that the girl could hear it over the phone. "Who made you cry? I'll kill them." She said harshly.

"The nurse doesn't believe me." Kitten's words kind of slurred together.

"Believe you about what doll? Whatever it is I'll set them straight I promise." Alice's voice had gone completely soft as she addressed the crying girl as soon as Kitten seemed distraught.

"The lady doesn't believe her that she doesn't have a birth name. She says everyone has both a birth name and medical records. Young Kitten keeps telling her she has neither but the nurse refuses to believe her." Anne spoke up and Alice growled from her end of the phone. "The nurse said if we could call someone else who would confirm her story they would believe her."

"For fucks sake, Torturing a 16 year old abused child. I hope the nurse is ashamed of herself." Alice spat. There was a pause and you could hear footsteps and voices. Kitten looked at the phone worry on her face.

"Ace, don't get yourself caught for me. Please." She said quickly and after another minute or two the voices and footsteps faded.

"Shh, hey you let me worry about me. Look is the nurse in the room?" Harry wondered if Alice was as abused as Kitten was and how old Alice was. He worried about this female who was Kitten's best friend especially if she was abused like Kitten. How either one of them had gotten cell phone privileges he wasn't sure. Maybe it was to shut them both up? He didn't know he didn't care he was just glad they had them.

"Yeah. That's why you're on speaker." Kitten's voice was broken up by hiccups as she cried and Harry rubbed his thumb over her hand again trying to sooth her yet again.

"I'm nurse Nancy, you mean to tell me she has no birth name at all? If I run her blood in the system I'll find no trace of her at all?" The nurse asked a little louder than necessary clearly not understanding how speaker phone worked.

"No, she doesn't have a fucking name. She never has, I gave her the only name she has. You can check her ID." The girl on the other end spat harshly and Harry was surprised a bit with the amount of heat coming from the young girl. It seemed to calm the girl on the bed immediately though, it was fascinating. "She's never been to a hospital, she doesn't have a birth certificate, doesn't have a name. The person who gave birth to her did it at home and then told everyone she was a miscarriage. SO leave her the fuck alone." Alice snarled.

"How do you know all this?" The nurse branched out at the risk of upsetting the girl who had started to doze on the bed holding Harry's hand and listening to Alice's voice.

"Because my shitty birth people have been in contact with her shitty birth people and no I'm not fucking telling you who her shitty birth people are." Harry frowned he wondered why Alice seemed so insistent on not revealing that. Surely it couldn't be that big of a deal, they had to just be normal parents of a 16 year old they didn't want. Which although was despicable on it's own couldn't be that big a deal to a nurse who just wanted to care for Kitten.

"Alright," The nurse relented. "I'll be back in the room to take her for some tests in a bit." Nancy announced before stepping out of the room. Harry looked at Kitten realizing she had mostly fallen asleep he clicked off speaker phone and held it up to his ear.

"She's fallen asleep. I took you off speaker phone so you can curse all you'd like with out my mum looking horrified every time you do." Alice let out a quiet laugh and Anne simply shook her head, reaching over to tuck Kitten's blankets more firmly around her. She then made herself at home in one of the chairs.


	4. It's Ok

"Tell your mum I'm sorry. You might want to warn her Kit's a little foul mouthed too once she warms up." Harry smiled and he could totally see the small girl on the bed having a foul mouth. Sure she was soft around the edges but there was this spark about her that he could see and he absolutely adored it already. "Can you do me a favor?"

"Sure, anything for her best friend. She talks really highly of you." He said quickly. Alice huffed but it was a soft noise not meant in anger or heat but one of amusement.

"When they run her blood they might find a connection with her birth family." Alice hated that she even had to be giving this information to anyone but she needed to let Harry in. She needed someone to keep her Kitten safe. "God, I want you to know how much I'm fucking trusting you."

"I promise, I won't let you down. Whatever it is. I won't break your trust, I'd never do anything to hurt her." He promised nearly stumbling over his words.

"You sound like a love sick puppy." She teased before groaning. "You are a love sick puppy." a sigh followed. "Alright fine, just no breaking her heart." Harry frowned unsure of if he'd call himself love sick but it might explain how he felt. "Anyway, it's not 100% certain they'll draw a direct line but if they do I need you to call me immediately. We've rehearsed the story if that happens." He was waiting patiently but really not all that patiently because he sucked at waiting. "Her birth mother is Kimberly Chambers married to Richard Chambers." He felt all the air rush out of him.

"No shit?" He couldn't even handle the information properly at the moment. He looked at the girl on the bed and he definitely couldn't see the resemblance. She'd been abandoned to die in London at 16 scared to death. He knew only a tiny bit but from what he did know she was abused and that didn't line up with what he knew from the Chambers.

"I wish I was talking bullshit. I'm sure you know them as the world renown Charity Chambers brand, for her and really only her it was more like the death chambers. If they get wind she is alive or connected they'll put a hit on her life." Alice warned and Harry was completely horrified. It didn't make sense for a family wanting to kill their teenage daughter. He couldn't imagine what she'd ever done to deserve that kind of hate from anyone. She was so sweet and kind even if he'd only known her maybe 24 hours there wasn't evil in her. "We've talked about a cover story and her family won't give a shit that she's been recovered as long as she isn't using their last name. They wanted her dead anyway."

"That's horrific." That was all he could figure out to say. It made zero sense. "How...what on earth...no one deserves that."

"Horrific is one word for it." More footsteps. "Fucking hell." she mumbled it took longer this time for the footsteps to fade.

"Are you safe?" His brain was functioning on autopilot with all this information. He was young, a teenager it was hard to process something like this. A soft sarcastic laugh.

"Safe is a debatable term. I'm safer than she's ever been." She was nearly whispering. "Look, I have to go. Don't tell Kit this but I'm getting out of here in the next few days, my family is setting up the 'tragic runaway' story because I'm not garnishing the kind of sympathy they want as a media vice right now." Alice huffed quietly. "So unlike Kitten's parents they actually want me to run away...and broadcast it to the world but if I run away before they plan they'll lose their shit. If they make a connection with Kitten before I run away they'll use it and endanger Kitten. Keep her safe for me alright? If they make a connection to her birth shit call me."

"I promise. Be as safe as you can. I live in Cheshire, London if you want to meet up with Kitten. She'll be staying with my family."

"ALICE WHITLOCK YOU HAVE AN INTERVIEW IN TEN FUCKING MINUTES AND I SWEAR TO GOD YOU LITTLE BITCH.." Harry couldn't hear the rest of the threat but the last name was again familiar and he hated that the two most famous families he knew were quite possibly the two most abusive families, though he wasn't sure yet. He knew the minimum, especially in Alice's case.

"Yes ma'am!" She shouted back. "Thank you Harry. I'll be making my way up as soon as I can. I'm coming from Italy so it'll take me a bit. I'll be safe, no worries, just take care of her. Let her know I love her." And with that the line went dead. Harry turned to his mother, his mouth open in shock and his mother sighed.

"Alice..."

"I know, I heard whoever was screaming at her." Anne shook her head. "She told you about Kitten's family didn't she." Harry looked at his mother struggling because he didn't want to lie to her but Alice made him promise. "It's alright Harry, I'm not going to ask. She told me that if she ever mentions her last name or shows up home they'll kill her so if Alice told you anything about her birth family it was because she felt you needed to know." He let out a breath he hadn't realized he was holding.

"She just asked a favor, one to keep Kitten safe." He gently put Kitten's phone back in her backpack and put his other hand on top of her hand right where the other was. She still felt so cold under his touch, the nurse walked in and shooed his hands away wheeling Kitten out of the room for 'tests' she insisted. He protested but of course the nurse really didn't care about what he had to say. "Mum?" his mother looked over at him in concern. "Can I stay with her while she's here? I promised I'd hold her hand the whole time she was here if it would make her feel better..."

"Of course, for now. We'll talk long term when we know a bit more of what's going on with her alright?" He nodded and his mother smiled walking over pressing a kiss to the top of his head. It was quiet for a while even once Kitten was pushed back into the hospital room, which she was still asleep when she was pushed back in. Words didn't come until the nurse who had insisted on giving Kitten came back in looking like she'd seen a ghost.

"So your friend, Kitten." Nancy pointed at Kitten on the bed who stirred. Harry wanted to growl until the nurse left or something but that would probably give away that there was something different about Kitten to the nurse. "She wasn't lying when she told you she doesn't have a name or a hospital record. There isn't even a DNA match in the system." Harry wasn't surprised Alice told him who she was and it wasn't like there had ever been a question in his head as to her truthfulness. Anne just looked at the nurse unimpressed.

"Yes, my son and I both told you she wasn't. Yet you had to go and distress the young lady even further by insisting she was lying." Anne was sharp, no child she would be treated the way Kitten had been. No one should have to grow up that way, you should be looking at universities at 17 not planning your funeral before you've ever even died at 16.

"I truly do apologize for that. We've had a rash of runaway teens this last month who didn't plan on the London weather being so harsh." The nurse explained Harry didn't care; he ran his thumb over the sleeping girl's knuckles again. The same thing he had been doing since she'd been returned to him since the tests, the same thing he would remain doing as long as his mother and Kitten would let him. "Usually they have a very mild case of hypothermia and we get them treated and give them a shelter name if they don't want to go back to their parents who are usually tourists from out of the country. The hypothermia is usually about a 24 hour treatment so I was thinking if we could get her treated and healthy for you guys to figure out from there that was what I wanted." The nurse sighed. "I didn't want to run anything other than a few basic tests on her because I was so sure I knew what was happening but she was so insistent and her friend was so...yeah So I had to order some more than basic tests."

"You thought she was just a whiny American making up a story because she couldn't handle the London weather." Anne deadpanned and The nurse looked ashamed. Harry couldn't help but shake his head. Had there really been enough American runaways that the hospital was doing the minimum and getting them turned back out? "So if it's a mild case of hypothermia we'll take her home tonight."

"No, no, no" The nurse rushed and he and his mum looked up at the female. "I was expecting it to be a mild case of hypothermia." she corrected herself quickly. "It's not. It's not a mild case of anything."

"Nancy," A man with dark hair stepped into the room and they all looked towards him. He wore a lab coat and he was holding a clipboard in his hands. "Have you informed them a little bit of why the young girl is still asleep?" He asked and Nancy shook her head. "I'm Doctor Sanders, I've been assigned to Kitten."

"I'm Anne and this is my son Harry. I found her outside of the bakery he works at for a few hours a week yesterday." Anne stood up and greeted the doctor shaking his hand. "Is she alright?" The doctor sighed and stepped around Nancy who had approached the bed with a cart Harry hadn't seen come into the room. Nancy was on the other side of Kitten's bed side and it was taking everything inside of Harry for him not to just stick his tongue out at the lady.

"No, not quite. I and one of the other doctors...Doctor Haner, met her a little before she came back into the room." He sighed looking over at the young girl on the bed and then too his clipboard. "She was in a lot of pain, as soon as we got the ok for pain treatment we got it on board." he promised as Harry looked up at him frowning, Harry hated that she hurt at all right now. "The results of the tests were shocking but before I reveal anything further can you explain to me what you plan on doing with the young lady?"

"Taking her home and loving her." Anne hummed looking down at the young girl and her son knowing what the look on her son's face meant. She had looked at her soon to be husband the same way when she met him. "I intend on taking very close care of her and taking her in." The doctor let out a soft reassured sounding sigh.

"Good, wherever, whatever she has run away from..." Doctor Sanders trailed off.

"She isn't a runaway." Harry snapped and his mother looked at him and he huffed. "I'm sorry, she's not a runaway though. I just don't like that everyone keeps assuming because she's young that she ran away...she's been on the streets since august without finding help or hospital or anything." He explained looking a bit ashamed of his tone a second ago.

"It's quite alright son," the doctor smiled, not upset with Harry in the slightest. "Do either of you know anything about where she's come from because if you do I'd look into pressing charges against them for child abuse and neglect." He added as he wrote something down on his clipboard.

"No, she's been very secretive of that. She told me she was sent here by no mistake but she has told me a little bit about the home she's grown up in." Anne added. "I wouldn't put her through that unless she wanted too." she added sharply and the doctor nodded. "Now, you said she isn't alright?"

"No, When we were looking over the CT scan the tech noticed something a bit odd so we ordered a MRI of her full body." He looked up at Anne and then at Harry almost wanting to cover Harry's ears. "There isn't a bone in her body that doesn't have some kind of scar tissue on it from a previous or badly treated break. Not even her skull. It appears to have been fractured at least twice in her life time." He rubbed his face and looked down at the test again. "So we looked at the muscles and her organs only to find the same thing the only thing that doesn't appear to have scar tissue on it or anything is her heart."

"Even her lungs?" The doctor nodded. "Her spine has scar tissue too?" He nodded again and Anne looked at Kitten tears in her eyes. How had someone abused her so badly. "Dear god, the poor thing."

"Unfortunately it gets worse. She's been severely malnourished. By the looks of it, it started way before she was ever abandon on the streets." He continued hating everything he was saying. "I'd like to do surgery if she's alright with it to give her stomach a bit more room to digest food and line it with some stand in tissue." He looked up at Anne and then over at Harry who had in fact started crying looking at Kitten. "By all accounts, her body shouldn't have survived any of this not to mention the infection in her bloodstream and extremely low oxygen levels on top of her hypothermia." He paused

"That bad?" His mother choked up.

"The worst case I've ever seen. How she's kept herself alive I don't know, if you waited any longer to get her to a hospital or if you hadn't found her she would have been dead by this morning. Her body is shutting down." He explained and Harry held her hand a little bit tighter.

"She wouldn't sit still last night, wouldn't sleep and she couldn't talk. She was so tired or focused and I didn't bother her. I stayed up with her." Harry sniffled, unable to hold it in. "She's not going to die is she?"

"She probably knew what was happening, if she sat still she may have passed away last night." Harry and Anne were both devastated and horrified. "No, now that she's here and we can take care of her properly she isn't going to die but she's going to need to be in the hospital for awhile and the treatment is going to be aggressive and probably a bit painful and frightening for her." He sighed. "She's fought for her life up till this point. I won't allow her body to give up on her. Do you know /anything/ about where she came from?" He asked again.

"America, she told me she's been abused as long as she can remember. She hadn't even been given a name until she was 12 and her close friend Alice named her." Anne explained. "She's terrified of going back or giving any information about who she has come from and I knew why yesterday but this makes it twice as horrifying. That's how she ended up getting named Kitten, they were 12 and her friend said she had 9 lives and reminded her of a Kitten." Anne's slight laugh was watery and it hurt her chest to know the child had been so abused.

"I believe that," He said without a beat. "The people she's come from have forced her to live in horrifying conditions and have clearly abused her beyond anything I've ever seen. The cutting," he gestured to her arms. "Was probably developed as a survival technique, I'll have a physiatrist come meet with her to talk about mental health if she's open to that." He added quickly. "I want to make sure she's as comfortable as she can be, we'll be continuing to give her anti anxiety medications we'd like to keep her mildly sedated as much as we can right now to give her body a chance to catch up to our treatments." They looked over to Kitten who had blinked her eyes slowly open looking at Harry's confusion on her face. She clumsily reached her hand over to touch Harry's face.

"S'ok why are you crying?" She rasped her throat feeling dry and her eyes wanted to close but Harry sounded so upset. Kitten didn't want him to be sad, she cared so much about him not being sad no matter what it was causing his sadness. The doctor looked shocked at the girl on the hospital bed. Harry looked up at her.

"You've been tortured to death and it's not fair." Harry tried not to sob and Kitten turned her head to cough for a moment before turning back to him, her hand not leaving his face.

"Mm not dead yet." She promised. "Don't be sad, I'm gonna be ok. The nice doctor said so. He says I'm super human." She let out a small wheezing giggle. Harry rubbed his face in his shirt not letting go of her hand to rub his tears away. "I don't like when you're sad," she mumbled leaning towards him. " I promise' I won't die if you promise to hold my hand." she tried to smile and Harry let out a choked off chuckle.

"Why do you look so shocked?" Anne asked in a hushed whisper towards the doctor.

"She shouldn't be awake, the sedative we gave her combined with the pain medication should have put her out for a full 24 hours at the very least." He stared at the bed. "You say she's only been with you and you're son for a day?" he questioned "Did she know you guys before?"

"She only met us yesterday. Why do you ask?" Anne frowned watching as Kitten brushed the tears that continued to fall off Harry's face.

"She seems to have an extreme emotional attachment to him. How she's awake...I don't know, I'm baffled. This girl..." he looked over at her. "She's quite the fighter. I've never met or seen anyone like her and I've been a doctor for 20 years."

"Love at first sight isn't just for adults I suppose." Anne said softly and The doctor nodded slowly.

"I've never seen it in someone so young, someone so beaten and having just met you yesterday... she doesn't seem to be shy to him at all." He said softly. "I would expect her to be afraid and anxious with him like she was with Doctor Haner and I."

"She hasn't been very shy at all with me or my son. My daughter put her on edge but other than that, she seems to be quite comfortable." Anne couldn't help the tiny smile on her face.

"You need a tissue," Kitten wheezed out what was supposed to be another giggle as she looked at Harry who was still furiously wiping his face on his sleeve without letting go of her. "S' the doctor in the room? your mum? you need a tissue," she wiped his tears again.

"Here love," Anne slowly came away from the doctor handing the box of kleenex to her son reaching up and brushing Kitten's hair away from her face. "Doctor Sanders was just letting us know just how superhuman you are." she added and Kitten shrugged, knocking herself around a little bit trying to actually do the motion. "He also mentioned you should be sleeping."

"Nooooo, he's upset. I don't want him to be sad, is he sad 'cause he thought I was dead?" She asked her words slurred but she was fighting the sleep because she wanted to make sure Harry was ok before she even allowed herself to go back to sleep. "'m not dead, s'just sleeping." She mumbled. "Do you wanna get on the bed with me so you know I'm just sleepin' so you can hear my heart and like...feel me breathin' and stuff?" She asked Harry. Harry wiped his face with the tissue finally letting go of her hand long enough to blow his nose and wipe his face.

"Will you go back to sleep if he gets on the bed with you?" Anne asked gently. Kitten squinted trying to bring her into focus but she was too off to the side and just a step too far away for her to actually see her.

"Mhm, promise. I don't wan' him to be scared," she added and Anne looked at Harry who looked over at the doctor. Doctor sanders eagerly nodded his ok interested in seeing what would happen when Harry climbed onto the bed. With the damage done to her she should be in extreme pain when he climbs onto the bed but he wasn't going to stand in the way.

"Ok, but if it hurts you have to tell me." Harry said quickly and Kitten hummed a bit to tired to actually respond. He slowly pulled off his shoes, she scooched over with a little help from the doctor. Harry climbed onto the bed laying his head next to her on the pillow cautious but itching to put his arms around her.

"S'ok you can hold me if you want...i'd like that." Harry hesitated but slowly very slowly he put his arms around her. She let her head rest against his shoulder and smiled. "You're warm. S'nice. M'fallin' asleep." She announced before falling into sleep almost immediately after finishing the sentence.

"Amazing." The doctor was a bit breathless as he looked at them. "She doesn't seem in pain or uncomfortable in the slightest." He couldn't believe it. "Ma'am can I speak with you..in the corner?


	5. Meetings

"Amazing." The doctor was a bit breathless as he looked at them. "She doesn't seem in pain or uncomfortable in the slightest." He couldn't believe it. "Ma'am can I speak with you..in the corner? Explain a bit why I'm so shocked away from...listening ears." He gestured to Harry and Kitten. Anne nodded afraid of what he was going to tell her.

"You seem a bit...overly shocked she's allowing him to be so close to her. We were just talking about how they seem to be deeply emotionally connect-"

"She's been sexually abused." Anne's words died on her tongue as the doctor interrupted her in a whisper. "Horrific trauma to that area of her body, kids may never be an option for her. I'm shocked because she shouldn't be so alright with him so close to her. I've never seen a victim of such sever abuse in that form be so inviting of anyone...even wives with their husbands. It takes weeks, months before they are comfortable." He added and Anne looked at the bed.

"That's...she's so young..." Anne shuddered as she recalled a comment that Kitten had made the previous night about being a 'stress' relief for people in the family. It made her physically ill as she realized part of what that statement had meant. "The hell hole she came from, they really were trying to kill her. She told me they were last night, that her family called her a cockroach because she just wouldn't die."

"A look at the test tell me she should have died from trauma to her body by now." He explained as quietly as possible. "She shouldn't have made it to her 16th birthday under these conditions, she shouldn't have lasted a night in the freezing temperatures. I don't know how she's managed to fight so hard." He really didn't get it. Her heart was slow but it refused to quit beating and he didn't know how she'd managed to keep it beating under the circumstances she'd been forced into. It was disgusting what someone had done to her body but he really didn't understand how she was alive. He was thankful she was but he wanted to know how.

"I guess she found a reason to fight. She told me about her friend Alice, I think Alice is part of why she fights but with what you've just told me...how it was possible that bond was strong enough to keep her alive is amazing." Anne breathed, never had she been so thankful for a stranger in her life. They were two 16 year old girls (ok Anne wasn't sure Alice was 16 but she sounded it on the phone.) how Kitten had found such a strong will to live in the bond was breath taking.

"I think she might have found another reason." He pointed to Harry who had his head resting on the top of hers. He had finally gotten his crying under control not wanting her to wake up again when she really did need to be sleeping. Anne laughed shaking her head, it made her heart warm that Kitten had formed such a quick bond with Harry, how she'd fallen in love with him so quickly. There was no doubt in her mind that her son shared the feelings even if neither one of them really understood the intense feelings they were having.

"Thank you." Anne said softly towards the doctor who nodded patting her shoulders before grabbing his clipboard and leaving the room. She pulled a chair up to the bed resting in it watching both her son and the new girl in her life. Pulling her phone out she sent a text to her daughter and her husband to meet her at the hospital and bring Harry's softest blanket and maybe some food. "Harry darling do you want any food, you're sister and father will be coming over shortly." Harry shrugged.

"I could always eat." He was whispering as if his voice would wake her up though it wouldn't. She wouldn't wake up unless he started crying again or sounded upset in some manner. If he tensed up or felt anxious she'd wake but unless that happened she'd remain asleep. She found comfort in the sound of his voice and the feeling of his body close to hers. "You don't think they'll judge Kitten for the cuts on her arms?" he asked worried for her.

"No darling, there is no room for judgment. Those probably helped her survive, I hate that she had to do it but I won't let anyone judge her for it." His mother promised patting her son on the arm very gently before going back to her phone. The last thing she wanted was anyone to come in and judge the girl who had fought tooth and nail to survive this far. She wouldn't allow anyone in her home to judge her for anything, nothing. There would be a zero tolerance policy in the home when it came to Kitten. "Do you think she's ever been to school?" she wondered aloud. Harry pulled a face looking down at the girl.

"I dunno, I think she'd have to have some kind of name to go to school. Alice said her mom had a home birth and told everyone she miscarried." Harry mentioned. "So I doubt it. They would have had to have some kind of trace of her to do that."

"She's extraordinarily intelligent for a girl whose never been to school. I wonder if this Alice would tell us a bit more about her?" she asked her son and Harry shrugged his shoulder delicately not wanting to shake Kitten at all.

"I don't know, Alice seems really protective of her. " It was true, it was highly unlikely Alice would tell them too much about Kitten or well at least he doubted she would. "I don't think you should put her into school though...I take my GCSE's soon but I don't think she should be under the stress of like...a school environment." He branched out because he was telling his mother how to parent this new girl though technically they weren't 'parenting' Kitten per say.

"That didn't cross my mind. I agree that it would be too much for her to be in an environment such as that and as long as you promise to continue your schooling, I won't even suggest it too her." Harry smiled at his mother and nodded. He would never quit school though it was tempting to quit school and stay with Kitten forever he knew he needed to go back to school and finish it out before he could even think about that. He doubted Kitten would want him to drop school for her. He had another two weeks off for Christmas break any how. "The doctor is pretty in awe of her." she said as she looked at her phone at the text from her daughter that they were here. She responded with the room number.

"I'm in awe of her too. She's so strong," Harry murmured looking down at her, she shivered and he pulled up the blankets tucking her further into them worry creasing in his eyebrows. He didn't want her to be cold and he hated that the hospital room was cold, she needed warmth. "I think she needs another blanket, she's shivering again." He nudged closer to her trying to use his body heat to warm her up and his mother nodded hitting a button and calling the nurse for another warm blanket. The nurse responded with a gentle 'yes ma'am' right as Gemma and John walked into the room.

"We come baring food!" Gemma said loudly and Harry immediately tried to cover the ear that wasn't smooshed into the pillow so that Gemma didn't wake her. Kitten whined slightly pushing herself into Harry but not quite waking up. His mother let out a soft breath, not wanting the young girl to wake up knowing how much she needed her sleep.

"Gemma, darling please lower your voice. She needs her sleep." Her mother said softly getting off her chair to greet her husband with a soft kiss taking one of the bags of food from him. Gemma looked over at the bed where Kitten was curled into Harry, it was hard to see any of Kitten or any of the parts Harry was worried about his sister judging because she was resting up against him.

"Poor thing, she looks terribly sick. Has the doctor been in yet?" John asked as he sat down pulling out his sandwich. He looked at Harry unsure of how his step son was going to be able to eat while he was holding the young girl on the bed. He was a bit confused as to why his son was on the bed with the young girl as well but he figured if his wife had allowed it there was a reason. John's voice caused Kitten to grip Harry's shirt as her eyes blinked open. She hadn't heard John's voice, he'd been away last night on a business trip so he was a new foreign male voice which was frightening for her.

"The doctor has been, she's extremely ill." Anne said softly. "He said if we hadn't brought her in this morning she would have been dead by this afternoon." John looked at the bed noticing her frightened eyes watching him. "they sedated her but-"

"She's awake," Gemma pointed out. Harry looked down at her a small sigh leaving his lips that was the last thing he wanted. She needed to be asleep, it took him a second to realize that his step father's voice frightened her awake. "Harry you want to eat or what you're food's getting cold?" his sister held out a bag for him a teasing smile on her face.

"Heeeey," Harry stuck his tongue out at his sister. "I got some chips and soda do you want some?" He looked down at Kitten as he took the bag setting it down on the blanket Kitten was covered by. She was still staring over him and at his step dad. "It's ok, I promise he's safe. He's my step dad John, not scary at all."

"She's scared of dad?" Gemma questioned looking towards her mother confused. Kitten looked at Gemma before looking at John who offered her a kind smile not wanting her to be startled by him. It took her a second to relax even a tiny bit. "He's not frightening, I promise love. He's not even slightly frightening, I've never even heard him raise his voice." She offered to Kitten who finally rewarded Gemma with a smile. Gemma felt fairly good when she got a smile out of the girl.

"Completely normal. She's come from and extremely abusive home," His mother explained to her daughter looking at Kitten who shivered again but her and Harry had rearranged themselves so they were sitting up a bit. Harry pulled out his food and Kitten looked at his box of chips and pulled her nose up.

"Those aren't chips, those are fries." She looked at Harry a smile on her face. Harry rolled his eyes sticking his tongue out at her because of course he knew in America they were called french fries but here in London they were called chips. Kitten knew that as well she was just giving him shit because she wanted to see if it would make him smile. She reached over and took a few her arms still a bit clumsy. Gemma and John both gasped then they saw the state of her arms and Kitten quickly dropped her arms and hid as fast as she could which caused some bouncing around and worry because she nearly ripped her IV out in the process of trying to hide.

"What happened to her arms?" John asked in a horrified voice. His mother looked towards her husband sternly as if that was going to stop the question that already came out of his mouth. Harry glared at his father before trying to tug the blanket slightly off Kitten's face so he could see her eyes again but she was hiding as best she could.

"Dad...I don't think we should ask her that. I think we should leave her alone. If it's something we need to know about she'll tell us when she's ready." Gemma coming to Kitten's defense had Harry beaming at his sister thankful he had her in his life. He had been worried about her judging Kitten the hardest but she seemed to be as supportive as his mother was of Kitten. "So fries yeah? You sound terribly American." Gemma teased and that caused Kitten to poke her head out and look at Gemma. Harry smiled and offered her another fry as a bribe to come further out of the blanket and it worked.

"m' very American. 'm accent is horrible I know." she mumbled taking the fry and slowly chewing on it not wanting to choke or force food down her throat before her throat was ready to actually swallow the food. Johng watched on a bit confused and worried but he didn't say another word instead he watched his son and this girl interact. "I taught m'self. I can't seem to get the British thing down though." She frowned as another shiver ran through her body making her shake the bed.

"I've met a lot of American's normally they have an area specific accent like a norther accent or a southern one." Kitten looked panicked. "You don't seem to have either, that's fascinating...wait did you say self taught?" Kitten was relieved that because she'd taught herself how to speak she hadn't picked up and accent that might identify where she came from in America. That was the last thing she wanted. The nurse walked in finally with another blanket covering Kitten as another shiver broke through her and made her whine.

"You just don't want to sleep do you?" The nurse interrupted the conversation a smile on his face and Kitten shook her head. "The shivering is normal, I'll check with the doctor to see if you can have some more muscle relaxers. Here's a blanket for you as well young man and ma'am" The nurse covered Kitten and then Harry before handing the warm blanket to Anne who thanked her and covered her lap with it. He made a quick exit and Kitten looked at Gemma.

"Taught' m'self! well...Ace helped 'bit" Harry noticed that her eyes always seemed to brighten when Kitten talked about her best friend. It made his heart warm. "'m sorry I cried when you called Harry weird yesterday...I just..he's real nice." She mumbled a soft pink dusting her cheeks and Gemma laughed shaking her head. Harry handed Kitten another few french fries.

"He is very nice, seems to have taken quite a liking to you." Gemma teased. "He's very charming." Kitten smiled up at Harry as she nibbled on the french fries scrunching her nose up at the soda when he offered it to her. She wasn't sure how it would feel on her throat so she wasn't super in love with the idea of drinking it at the moment.

"So you've never been to a school?" John asked and again when he spoke Kitten paused her whole body going tense. To her senses the question felt a bit judgmental and accusatory and she didn't want to answer it wrong. She didn't want to go to school, she was afraid of school. Too many people her own age, too much pressure, too many opportunities for things to go wrong.

"No..." Kitten fought the urge to be defiant, it was in her blood to try and be defiant under all costs to an abuser but this man wasn't an abuser and she was trying to remember that. She looked down at her hands and the IV in her arm instead of over at Harry's step father. Defiance was often how she'd survived even if it had gotten her strangled more than once.

"How is that even possible?" John was completely confused, he hadn't been caught up much on this stranger his wife had taken in. He had been busy with work the other night so this whole thing hadn't been explained to him. Kitten didn't like the way John sounded even if he wasn't being intentionally being judgmental she didn't really want to answer his questions.

"Honey I think there's a time and place for more questions and it's not right now." Anne said quickly trying to cut her husband off before he could upset Kitten further not wanting her to exhaust herself by getting upset with the situation. Kitten pushed Harry's hand away when he offered more food, a violent shiver racked through her but when the nurse came back in offering her a muscle relaxer to ease the shivers she turned it down. Harry was a bit irritated that John had freaked out Kitten to the point she was turning down medication.


	6. Don't Fancy John

"It's ok, do you want me to call Alice?" Harry asked quietly and Kitten shook her head but held her hand out to him. He smiled and took her hand into his rubbing his fingers over her knuckles. She eased a tiny bit closing her eyes. "The nurse is still in the room I think you should take the muscle relaxer," He urged.

"I won't let John hurt you, I promise." Gemma smiled patting her hand and Kitten flinched but sighed before nodding. The nurse made his way back over to the bed giving Kitten the medication. He watched as the young girl's eyes finally started to drift shut and her head leaned towards Harry before she fell asleep.

"Hopefully that keeps her asleep for awhile. Poor thing is in desperate need of some sleep," The male nurse smile. "If you all need anything let us know." He exited the room leaving the small family alone in the room with a finally sleeping teenage girl.

"I'm assuming she's been locked up most of her life." Anne said gently towards her husband, she kept her tone as quiet as possible not wanting to wake Kitten again. She proceeded to fill her husband in with a bit of what they knew keeping a bit of it private not sure what she should share just yet. He still seemed fairly dubious of the cuts on the young girls arms. He wanted to ask another question but the look on his wife's face told him he wasn't welcome to ask any more questions at least not tonight.

The next week was extremely hard and painful for Kitten as her body began to warm up everything began to hurt on a level she couldn't even fathom. The only one she would even let touch her was Harry, she couldn't stay asleep for very long either because she was in so much pain. There were bouts where her heart was going in and out of going too slow and then too fast. The doctors and nurses were working around the clock to try and keep her pain and other symptoms of discomfort under control. Her kidneys were causing her trouble, her stomach was refusing any food and hydration and she was beginning to run a fever on and off but the doctors didn't seem to be worried that she was going down hill.

In fact one meeting Doctor Sanders had with Anne he told her he expected this to happen and that it might get worse before it gets better but that it would get better with close attention and treatment. He told her that Kitten still seemed to be responding best to nurses and sedation treatments when Harry was around to hold her hand. Whenever they had to take Kitten out of the room where Harry couldn't hold her hand Kitten would sob and cry and apologize because it hurt to be touched but as soon as she got back into the room and Harry got his hand back in hers she settled down and eased her crying with the nurses.

"It's almost as if he's tripping her endorphins so much that it counteracts the pain enough for the sedation and medication to do it's job," The doctor had told Anne and her husband one night when Harry had fallen asleep half way on the bed. Kitten had wanted him all the way on the bed but John had objected and it had upset her greatly so Harry had halfway climbed on setting his head on her stomach to ease her stress at least a tiny bit. That was part of why the doctor had pulled them aside that night and told them about what Harry was doing for Kitten. "I realize you are his parents and you have the final say but I advise you to not object to any contact she requests from him." He had directed that at John because Anne never objected to contact Kitten requested.

Two days into week two Kitten had to be wheeled into emergency surgery where her appendix, gallbladder were removed, her pancreas was operated on but not taken out because the doctors believed they could treat it instead of removing it. They inserted the lining in the stomach she'd approved of the day before to expanded her stomach and repaired two beginning rips in some of her stomach muscles before stitching her back up and sending her back to the room. When she woke up on day three her eyes seemed just a tad bit brighter but she was still running a fever and in a lot of pain but she seemed to be in a good mental health space and her heart monitor seemed to be in a good spot.

"Do you have a favorite color?" Kitten asked out of the blue looking at Harry as she scooted over on the bed inviting him up onto the bed even though she cringed and whined a bit when she moved.

"Harry I don't think you should get on the bed." His father corrected but Harry ignored him and climbed on the bed with her any way. "You're mother is at work but that puts me in charge. Harry." Harry was completely ignoring him but he was raising Kitten's anxiety significantly.

"I do, I have two actually. Blue and orange do you?" Harry asked trying to draw her attention away from his father who was making disgruntled noises and causing Kitten distress. "Ignore him...I am." Harry smiled at her but her face scrunched up.

"Can we call Alice?" She asked trying not to cry and Harry nodded quickly reaching around to dig around for her phone. Finding it he hit the button to call her number. "On speaker? She likes hearing you talk, she thinks you have a funny British accent." Harry laughed and nodded and if it made Kitten feel safer to have Alice on the phone while his Step father bitched and moaned about him being on the hospital bed with her than he'd more than willingly take some teasing from the girl he was getting to know quite well. Seeing as he was the one updating Alice on Kitten's condition and hospital procedures.

"Heyo pup," Kitten giggled. "Aww, is my darling Kitten awake today?"

"You've nicknamed him Pup?" She asked and Harry blushed because she'd named him that after listening to him talk about Kitten. He had finally agreed that he /might/ be a little bit of a love sick puppy when it came to Kitten.

"Yup, he sent a picture of himself to me the other day. He looks like an over grown puppy." Harry was glad that Alice didn't just divulge why she really named him that. Though he felt a bit honored he'd been nicknamed by the girl in the first place.

"Harry I said you need to get off the bed and hang up the phone she needs to be resting." John was being stern and Kitten shook slightly looking at Harry who shook his head putting his arm around her and letting her hold the phone.

"That better not be one of her fucking doctors," Alice hissed.

"N..no..it..it's..ha..har.."Kitten was stuttering too bad to complete her sentence.

"Step dad, my step dad. He thinks that just because my mum's at work today and my sister can't get here until later that he's calling the shots. Doctor Sanders would never talk to her like that." Harry said quickly nudging the side of Kitten's head with his nose trying to calm her down. "Tell Alice how amazing you were yesterday..." Harry encouraged Kitten who looked back at the phone.

"I was in surgery! For like ever, but I don't think I was very amazing. I cried until they brought me back to Harry. He holds my hand all day Ace, he gets on the bed with me and holds me too and sometimes plays with my hair." Kitten told her friend her voice a bit floaty as she looked briefly up at Harry her eyes sparkling. "even when everything hurts it feels better when he's near me..it's weird." Alice let out a soft sigh.

"It's love," She told Kitten in the softest tone Harry had ever heard. How Alice knew what love was when it sounded like she'd probably never experienced it either he'd never know but he had over heard the doctors comments about endorphins and his moms comments about love so he knew Alice was right. "Remember that friend I met last year I met in Italy?"

"Of course! William!" Kitten said quickly.

"Mhm, I told you about how my stomach got all fluttery. How everything suddenly felt lighter and I knew. I could see, he saw it too. Remember?" Kitten was smiling.

"Yeah, you told me his mum said she'd see you again some day and when you said you hoped so she said she knew so. He was so sweet to you, he was helping out on set of the shoot you were at." Kitten leaned into Harry at the memories of what Alice had told her about this William boy. "He was lovely to you, I always wondered what that feeling was."

"Love, babe. It's love and what you're feeling for Harry, why your body feels better when he's holding your hand or on the bed with you it's because you're in love with him. You're body knows it," Alice sounded a bit choked up and Kitten was tearing up but it wasn't bad scared tears any more. "Harry feels the same about you, that's why I nicknamed him Pup. I knew he was a love sick puppy the first night I talked to him." She laughed.

"They are 16 I wish everyone would stop telling them they are in love!" John snapped. And Kitten jumped nearly dropping the phone, she let out a small scream immediately scrambling like she was going to get out of the bed and make a run for it because she was frightened.

"What the fuck?! What the fuck are you doing yelling at her?! You fucking bastard! You better fucking hope by the time I get up there in a week or so you've fucking apologized!" Alice hollered through the phone but Kitten was still trying to scramble off the bed but she was failing miserably. Harry was having a hard time trying to get a hold on Kitten and keep himself steady on the bed. He was two seconds from losing his cool at his step father.

"Hold on Alice, she's trying to get off the bed. She is trying to get off the bed." He was trying hard to keep Kitten from struggling off the bed but she was getting more and more upset as she tried to get off the bed and couldn't. She was a bit too weak to try and fight against any weight Harry put on her and he didn't want to restrain her when she was frightened. Harry wanted her to trust him not want her to feel like he would keep her in a dangerous situation when she was too scared to be in it.

"Um, shit." He could hear the frustration in her voice. "Oh! I know! Can you sing?" Harry looked at the phone confused.

"Yeah, I love to sing...what's that got to do with anything?" He asked as Kitten began to cry when John came around the other side of the bed trying to encourage her to stay on the bed it just forced her into a corner against Harry causing her to begin to get more hysterical.

"Sing to her. It's how I comfort her when I can, pick a song...if you pick a song I know I'll join in and we can sing to her together and it should settle her down." Alice rushed out and Harry nodded at the phone trying to focus on what he should sing to her before it came to her.

"We do it all, everything, on our own..." Harry began to sing one of his absolute favorite songs and Alice picked up right after him. Kitten paused her freaking out and looked at the phone and then at Harry, Chasing Cars by Snow Patrol was a song Alice sang to her all the time. She loved it, not to mention she'd never heard Harry sing before. The sound of his voice was absolutely mesmerizing and when it was combined with Alice's who had comforting voice in Kitten's opinion at least, her brain eased.

"Let's waste time, chasing cars, around our heads..."Alice continued and Harry noted that the girl seemed to have a pretty alright singing voice. It wasn't like his sister's who when she sang he swore he could hear cats cry and Kitten seemed to respond really well to the girl's voice. She didn't even seem to notice that John was still actively scolding Harry and standing on the other side of the bed. The 16 year old girl was watching Harry her mind at ease as she listened to them sing. He leaned back going to click the 'call nurse button' when he noticed someone he didn't expect to come walking in.

"If I lay here, If I just lay here...Would you lie with me and just forget the world?" Harry and Alice finished the song quietly and Kitten had settled back into Harry her grip moving back onto the phone and onto Harry's hand. His arm had gone back across her waist and the other propping himself up to look at her.

"I love that song," Kitten's voice was as soft as the sheet's that covered her cold body. Harry smiled down at her ignoring the man that had just enter the room for another moment. He'd deal with it in just a second. "Ace did you say you would be coming in a few weeks?"

"I might have," Alice teased before sighing. "I've got to go babe, I've got a train to catch and I want to save my phone battery so I can call you later ok?"

"M'kay. I love you...."

"Love you too sweets'. Pup you take care of our Kitten, keep your step dad at bay and warn him I'm a bit of a hot head." Alice promised before hanging up not really giving Harry a chance to answer but he laughed any way because he knew he'd get a chance to talk to her more later, he always got a chance to talk to her at night, Kitten usually fell asleep halfway through the conversation which left him time to talk to her. He was getting to know Alice pretty well and he was loving what he was getting to know.

"She must like you, she doesn't give an' one nicknames bu' me." Kitten yawned nudging her nose under Harry's jaw tensing a little when John renewed his protests.

"She's pretty awesome." Harry smiled brushing some hair off Kitten's cheek. "Ok, I don't want to startle you but my birth dad walked into the hospital room while I was singing to you with Alice." Kitten nodded.


	7. You don't scare me...Maybe

"I saw 'm." Harry wondered why she hadn't seemed to be at all startled by his birth dad's presence but John's presence always seemed to startle her. "He c'n com'ere and meet me." he could tell she was starting to get really tired because she was slurring more than usual. She always tried really hard to use her words as clear as possible to convince people she was awake and smart especially around John but when she got tired she couldn't make it work.

"I don't want to scare the lass," Harry's father said softly and Kitten giggled tiredly.

"H' called me a lass." Harry smiled at her pulling a face. "S'ok tell 'm he's n't scary." her smile was lazy and weak from exhaustion and he wanted nothing more than to ease her to sleep but John was still grunting in displeasure and that was keeping Kitten just this side of too tense to sleep.

"She's alright with you, I think she wants to meet you. She's really tired so don't mind the slurring." Kitten stuck her tongue out at Harry as his father pushed past his Step father and approached the bed. Kitten leaned her head away from Harry blinking at the kind face she'd seen briefly in the door way while Harry and Alice had been singing to her. "Kitten this is my dad, Des. Dad this is Kitten." He introduced them.

"You have kind eyes...like my sunshine." It was the first time Harry had ever heard that name and he wondered if she was referring to Alice. It took her a minute before she looked up at Harry her eyes sparkling a bit.

"Please tell me you mean you're girlfriend." John grunted from his spot and Harry glared at his step-dad who seemed to judging his Kitten much to harshly. Yes /his/ Kitten, Alice was right. He was a love sick puppy for her and it was better to just admit it than fight it.

"Like Harry," Kitten clarified more for Des and Harry than for John who she was actively trying to ignore. It was clear where Harry got his eyes from, though his mother had beautiful eyes as well, it was what had made her feel so safe when she'd met them. "'m Kitten, You're son's real nice 'n I think 'm in love with 'im. Ace says I am...S' does his mum...I like her." She smiled a little dazed looking at Des a bit guarded because John reacted so badly every time someone suggested that Kitten was in love with Harry.

"He's a bit like his own ball of sunshine isn't he?" Des said softly looking at the young girl and then at his son. "I think you might very well be in love with him. His mum has told me all about it, she's already grown to love you. In fact she sent me here to check up on you two make sure you were doing well." He smiled trying not to turn around and glare at John. "She said I should meet the girl who will be my daughter in law some day." he teased and Kitten squealed out a little giggle hiding her face in Harry's chest.

"I've got it under control why would Anne send you over too check on them?" John snapped and Kitten tightened her grip on Harry who quickly leaned down and began to hum softly into her ear.

"Don't worry young love, I'm not going to let anyone hurt you." Kitten relaxed between Harry's humming and Des' presence in the room she felt safe. Completely and utterly safe, it didn't matter who walked in or out of that room. She knew Des and Harry would protect her.

"For the last time, I'm not going to hurt her." John was irritated with all of this talk of Kitten being frightened with him and the constant need to reassure the child that he wasn't going to cause her pain. He never imagined even slightly causing someone pain. "I just think indulging these two teenagers in thinking they are 'in love' is ridiculous and dangerous."

"How on earth could it even be considered dangerous John? Why are you so furious at the idea?" Des sounded just as irritated as John had. Kitten's eyes were a fighting to stay open but she was still actively listening to the conversation even if she couldn't keep her eyes open. She was tired but John was making everything a bit too hard to relax even if she knew she was safe, it didn't feel great having him around.

"Harry isn't even 16 yet-"

"I turn 16 next month John. My age and her age has nothing to do with this." Harry argued looking at his step father irritated that he felt the need to bring up that he was still about a month away from being 16. February 2nd was his birthday and he couldn't wait.

"Harry has been in love with the idea of love since he turned 10," John crossed his arms over his chest as if that was a valid point. "and the young girl, from what I understand, doesn't even know what love is. Harry is the first person to ever express affection for her." Kitten's whole body suddenly throbbed with pain. "The boy has a tender heart, he loves and cares about everyone. That doesn't mean he's in love and Kitten, I don't know anything about her but you see the cuts on her arms and she looks at Harry like he's the reason she's breathing and what happens when Harry moves on? Harry's 16 he'll move on." Kitten could literally feel her heart skip in the worst way and it throbbed in her chest. "I'm not trying to be harsh..."

"That's awful of you, Harry doesn't fall in love with everything. I've been in here ten seconds and I can see it between them if you can't you're blind. He is the reason she's breathing, or at least part of the reason she's breathing, I imagine this Alice they were talking to when I came in has a part." Des said firmly glaring at John. "You're furious about them being in love when the last girl Harry brought home you ador-" Des looked at Kitten and then at John fury on his face.

"Darcy was a wonderful young lady." John said in defense of himself. Harry frowned looking up at his step father because him and this Darcy girl had dated for about 3 months before he'd found out she'd just been using him. Harry was smart, extremely smart but he also had that cool edge because he sang and the school knew he sang and he was kind. Darcy had a dingy reputation and was failing some classes and had made a bet with some of her friends that she could get Harry to not only date her but give her his virginity. Needless to say she lost that bet, Harry never intended on giving that away.

"Darcy was using me. Darcy dated me so I would do her homework and came around the house all the time because she hoped I'd have sex with her because she had a bet going with her friends." Harry said bluntly and Kitten whose head was swimming with John's words looked up anger swimming inside with those thoughts now. How dare someone use Harry for such a thing. How dare some one treat him like he was anything less than a completely wonderful gentleman. "She told the school I was either gay or had some kind of mental issue because when she showed me her boobs I simply turned away and told her to put her clothes back on."

"No, you're a gentleman." Kitten said softly before anyone else could talk. "You're not gay or sick in the head, You're wonderful and smart. You don't ever want to do something you aren't sure is right, I can just tell and that makes you a gentleman. You're mama raised you to be a gentleman." She continued rubbing at her eyes her heart was still beating erratically because of John's words echoing around her head and in her chest though the doctor had turned off the monitor so it didn't beep until Kitten hit a certain rhythm which she hadn't hit yet. "It's disgusting that she had a bet going for your virginity. That's something that only you should get to decide when and who it goes to..." Kitten took a deep breath trying to relax.

"Darcy was awful, Anne hated her." Des snapped. "You are hung up on Darcy because her family was wealthy and 'picture perfect' is what Anne told me you always called them." Kitten let out a dry sob. She'd heard her family referred to as that one too many times. "Darcy was using Harry too prove that she could have anything she wanted any time she wanted, just like the rest of her family. You were too blinded by the shiny dime her parents always dropped to see the way it hurt Harry." It was like a trigger was flipped and Kitten blacked out the monitor went erratic and doctor sanders and a few nurses were rushing in.

No one pushed Harry off the bed though John went to tell Harry to get off the bed but Doctor sanders actually rose his voice at the man and told him to shut up. He would deal with a furious parent in a moment, after he figured out what exactly was happening. Harry couldn't quite figure it out himself, he couldn't make out the quick mumbling of the nurses and the doctors as they seemed to bustle around them. A few of them disappearing and coming back. One of them hooked a new bag onto the little IV stand and connected it to the iv in her hand. as the doctor injected a blueish liquid into her IV, he watched for a moment frowning when he didn't get the direct results he wanted. He told Harry to look away if he was squeamish of larger needles and Harry covered his own eyes but he didn't let go of Kitten. The doctor slipped a larger needle into Kitten's chest and it sat there for a moment before he pulled it out and the heart monitor slowly slipped back into a normal rhythm. A small sigh of relief echoed through the room before the nurses began to exit.

"Amelia, call the number listed on her emergency contact. Anne cox, if you can't get a hold of her call Gemma styles she's next on the list until I can sort this out one of them should be here." Doctor sanders noted and a small blonde nurse nodded before quickly exiting the room to make the phone call. He looked at Harry a small look of worry still on his face. "Are you alright?"

"Yeah, I'm ok...I mean a little freaked out because I don't want her to die but ok." He said quickly pressing his face into Kitten's hair where she remained asleep or well passed out on the hospital bed. Doctor sanders nodded. "Is she...like...asleep or passed out or..what?"

"Probably more passed out than asleep and she should remain in that state for awhile. Though with her you never quite know." He laughed. "Her heart is under tremendous strain and we have all the means to support it and we have been doing so." He frowned looking at the bed. "This sudden burst of..."he didn't want to say cardiac arrest or possible pre-cardiac arrest. "Well was just that...sudden, though this is why we have her monitored. Her temperature hasn't spiked, none of her other vitals changed which means it was more than likely an exterior stressors...such as I don't know your father trying to force you off the bed again?"

"That times ten, he already did that. She freaked out I had to call Alice to keep her on the hospital bed. I was going to call a nurse but my real dad walked in and she calmed down with him in the room." Harry explained. "And then my step dad went and started talking about my ex and how Kitten and I are really in love and how we dangerous it is for us to be told we are in love. and he started to say how I'm just going to move on and how she can't really know what love is..." Doctor sanders whirled around to look at John anger on his features.

"How many times do I have to discuss this with you Mr. cox? We have studied her brain activity when he's around her, that is why we took them both out of the room the other day. We have watched them closely, I have had a physiologist observe them, everyone has said the exact same thing." He growled. "The only one doing them harm is you and if you counter the young lady's request or in any way cause her distress like you just have you will be removed and not allowed back. You're walking a fine line, the only reason I'm letting her go home with you is because she has no where else to go...and Harry...and Anne."

"I can take her home...she can have Harry at my place. I'm sure Anne would allow that if John is causing her too much distress. She doesn't want the girl under stress, that's why she called me to check in because she couldn't be here and she knew her husband was." Des said and the doctor turned to him having no idea who he was. "Hi, I'm Desmond Styles. Harry's biological father and Anne's first husband. Things had calmed down until the young lass mentioned that I had 'kind eyes like her sunshine'" Harry blushed and John huffed.

"That sounds very her. So she was completely comfortable with you?" The doctor asked quizzically, yet another man the young girl had come across she wasn't immediately startled by. It was amazing, she seemed to be startled and frightened by John but not Des.

"She actually invited him over to the side of the bed to meet her. Told him she wasn't afraid of him, she likes him." Harry smiled and the doctor laughed.

"She must see you as an extension of Harry or see the same safety in you that she sees in him. How or why I'm not sure. Not many have gained her trust and with her background of abuse no one should be able to have her trust the way..."He paused and gestured to Harry. "The way your son has or Anne. She's still a bit jumpy with your daughter but it's alright she's learning. If she trusts you," he paused again. "Then so do I. You however." he looked directly towards John. "She doesn't trust you, I don't trust you, I don't like you. Cause her to nearly fall into cardiac arrest again and I'll see too it she doesn't go home with you."

"I don't want my son involved with a girl who is clearly emotionally unstable and has some kind of background we know nothing about." John huffed and Harry growled, anger radiating off him as he listed to his step father talk. He grabbed the blankets he and Kitten were covered with and gently pulled them up to cover Kitten's arms so her cuts weren't exposed.

"It's a good thing he isn't your son then isn't it?" Des snapped in anger, John looked furious. It wasn't always a good situation when you put them in the same room and Harry knew that but Kitten was important to him and he'd been hoping his step father would come around.


	8. Chapter 8

"It's a good thing he isn't your son then isn't it?" Des snapped in anger, John looked furious. It wasn't always a good situation when you put them in the same room and Harry knew that but Kitten was important to him and he'd been hoping his step father would come around.

"He is my son!" John tried not to raise his voice. "Doctor you can't tell me she's emotionally stable! She can't even make her own choices half the time. She could be delusional, we don't know because she won't share with us who her parents are or what her background is."

"Emotionally unstable?" The doctor actually laughed in John's face which wasn't the most professional thing on the planet but for right now it would have to do. He was too angry not too. "For a 16 year old girl who has had every single bone in her body broken, who has has no record of ever being born, who has survived 4 months alone on the streets of London in freezing conditions? She's astoundingly emotionally stable. Now, if you'll excuse me I have another patient to attend to. I leave you in charge Mister Styles, call me back if Mrs.cox doesn't arrive soon." Des nodded. It was quite for a few minutes after the doctor left before Harry finally spoke.

"Her parents, her background, it shouldn't matter to you." Harry looked at John shaking his head, if he trusted his step father he might tell him a little bit about her history. Thing's she'd told him when they talked sometimes around his mother so they weren't a secret. They didn't talk about her history around John because Kitten didn't trust him. It was rare she actually held much of a conversation with anyone but Harry when John was around. "You were here when Dr. Seward, the therapist met with her. You heard the same report mum and I did. She's not delusional, she's been tortured."

"She hasn't gotten a second opinion Harry. I love you but you know nothing about this girl, I know you mean well but have you stopped to think she might just be a bit of a misfit. American girls are notorious for being a bit of a hassle." John slipped into a chair taking his glasses off to pinch the bridge of his nose in frustration. "I want you to find a good sweet girl once you pass your tests and head towards university, one smart and able too go more than an hour with out seeing you before combustion."

"I'm not going to university." Harry shrugged though he was furious at his father he was trying to calm himself down so he wouldn't wake Kitten up in his distress. Des wasn't shocked by the announcement, Harry was very much dedicated to his art of being a musician. They'd talked about it and while Harry was trying to make his way through the music world he would be doing photography on the side, he had already photographed some weddings and school shoots and gotten paid. His son wanted to work in the arts, University was never something on Harry's radar.

"What? Harry, you can't just not go. You need an education, you have to have something to fall back on," When all Harry did was glare at him he sighed. "If you're not going to uni you need to have a nice educated, stable woman who can at least take care of you."

"You keep saying educated like Kitten is some kind of imbecilic." Des' voice was extremely cross but he was following his son's lead in changing his volume and clear annoyance. Not sure why his son had changed his way of speaking but knowing he had a reason. "You just want him to marry rich. She's not a danger to Harry, if you had you're way you'd probably send her back to whatever hell hole she came from."

"I don't know what Anne's told you but she is uneducated." John said matter of fact-ly. It took all of Harry's 16 year old patients to not break out in fury at his step father's accusations. "I want him to marry his eaqually and if they happen to have money good."

"What have I told you about calling the sweet girl uneducated. She is not some kind of animal, she is neither dumb or slow as you've argued." Anne's voice was a relief to Harry's ears as his mother stepped into the room a look of worry on her face as she looked at the bed before severe irritation towards her husband. "Kitten very much is his equal. She takes care of him emotionally. She's bright as they come." She walked over to the hospital bed tucking some hair off Kitten's face looking towards her son.

"He can't focus on anything other than money and formal education apparently." Harry scoffed looking up as his mother kissed Kitten's forehead before leaning in and kissing his as well petting his hair for a moment clearly worried about both of them.

"Is that what he's giving her all this trouble over? Money? Is he complaining again you haven't found a girl 'from money' such as Darcy?" Harry nodded at his mother's question. She turned towards John a furious scowl on her face.

"That and he's positively convinced she's emotionally unstable, I guess he thinks she's delusional? That because she won't tell you about her family for some reason that means she's delusional." Des supplied and Anne scoffed towards her husband.

"Delusional? You think the 16 year old girl, who has defied all odds by being alive for me to find is Delusional? All because she won't elaborate on where she came from? Did it ever occure to you that she's afraid you'll send her back?" She shot towards John in irritation. Kitten stirred slightly hearing Anne's voice but not fully waking up. "She's afraid of you, she doesn't have to share anything with us. Des please tell me you've been in here telling her that."

"I haven't had the chance, I met her for a few moments before John began to talk about Darcy and how in love Harry and Kitten aren't and then," his father gestured to the bed. "She was out, monitors were screaming and doctors and nurses were running in." He explained. "I promised I wouldn't let John hurt her if it's any comfort to you?"

"She's not scared of Da like she is of John." Harry said proudly kissing the top of Kitten's head his arm rubbing over Kitten's arm under the blanket. "She thinks he has kind eyes." Anne laughed quietly shaking her head because of course Kitten thought Des was kind, he was a very kind man. That wasn't why they had separated, things had simply changed between them. It wasn't some messy break up. "John mentioned Darcy's family coming from money and I don't know what happened."

"That was Des. He said she had a picture perfect family and money and that was why I liked her, though her family was quite amazing." John admitted shrugging his shoulders slightly. "They were very kind, Darcy lived in luxury there isn't anything wrong with that." Anne's face morphed into pain and understanding and she looked at her son.

"That's why she reacted the way she did. Her family, from what she has said was wealthy. Is well wealthy, I should say." Realization dawned on Harry and he looked down at Kitten before going to climb off the bed wanting to get up in his step father's face for daring say such a thing around Kitten as if she wasn't perfectly perfect on her own with out the wealth.

"She's perfect the way she is! She doesn't need money! Or some stupid fancy family! Her family tortured her, I don't want any one else." Harry couldn't help the slight raise in his voice. Kitten began to stir blinking her heavy eyes open to try and make sense of what was going on and why her chest hurt. "I love her! The shit she came from wasn't worth all the money in the world! How could you say something about her? I don't want money or fancy things!" Kitten groaned reaching for Harry. "How dare you!" he shouted.

"Noooo, come back." Kitten rasped out reaching for Harry who had gotten off the bed. Things were still blurry and a bit out of focus so she hadn't realized Anne was in the room yet. Harry was so furious it was hard to try and convince himself to calm down enough to get on the bed. He didn't want to hurt her and he wasn't sure he could be gentle right now. He was so angry. "What's going on?" She mumbled still grabbing around in the air for Harry the medicine the doctor gave her rendering her unable to really get upset. Her heart was being controlled and she was exhausted.

"She taught herself everything she knows! The people she came from didn't give her a name! They didn't care that she existed! The only person that's ever cared is Alice! You aren't worried she's a misfit you're mad because she's fucking poor!" Harry didn't move any closer to his step father but he hadn't climbed back on the bed with Kitten. He hadn't moved. "She's survived 16 year on her own! She's fought so hard and I won't let you come in here and start throwing around accusations. She isn't unstable! She's amazing!" Kitten fumbled around to cover her eyes trying to blink them clear again or at least cover the blurry room so she didn't get sick trying to make it out.

"I am unstable," Kitten wasn't really looking to argue with anyone. "I cut myself to survive, don't think that's very stable. The therapist and Ace says it's the only way I've stayed alive. Cause I let it out." She admitted it wasn't like they'd talked about her cutting, the therapist had hinted at it but Kitten hadn't really given her much to work with. IT wasn't something she favored talking about. "I am poor and part of me wants to apologize for that and the other part of me wouldn't want money for anything in the world." she rubbed her eyes but she was so tired.

"The therapist said exactly that. It was a means to survival, you needed it. That's part of the reason you're alive after 4 months on the streets. It caused a shock to your system which allowed you to snap your body into some kind of fight or flight mode." Anne explained exactly what the therapist had said mainly for Des' sake it wasn't like any of them had forgotten what the nice man had said about her. Everyone that met her was completely amazed by her. "You don't need money to be loved."

"Money isn't love," Kitten agreed. "I know that you don't think I'm worth your son's time Mister cox." Kitten leaned her head to the side still covering her eyes. She had been able to feel it from the second John had met her. He didn't favor her, he didn't like that everyone said they were in love. He didn't like the idea of her as a daughter in his life, she wasn't sure he ever would. "I understand more than you think, I don't think I'm worth his time either. I don't even think I'm worth loving but I can't convince him of it. I'm sorry."

"Because it's not true, you are worth loving. You are worth my time, I don't want to do anything but spend time with you. I'm in love with you whether he likes it or not." Harry said firmly and Kitten shrugged finally pulling her hand away from her eyes able to make out the faces in the room and John's was tired and slightly annoyed. Des looked at her in kindness and Anne was looking at her the same way she always did when she talked about being worth loving.

"Harry's right love, just because your parents couldn't show you love doesn't mean you aren't worth it. It just means they are scum." Anne said softly and Kitten let out a slight laugh but it was a bit muted because her chest hurt.

"Scum is too nice a word. They don't do anything scummy, I don't really have a word for it." She looked at Harry. He had his back to her where he was staring down his step father, his breath coming out in angry pants instead of normal. "Harry, it's not worth it. I know you're mad but it's not worth starting a physical fight with him. He doesn't like me, it's ok. He isn't the first." She tried to sit up a bit but she couldn't. She was tired and it was too hard to hold her self up to scoot up on the bed.

"Harry isn't violent, you know nothing about him." That stung but Kitten didn't show it on her face because she could feel that Harry needed her to be calm.


	9. This Love

"He punched a kid's lights out when they got up in Gemma's space after she told them to leave her alone." Des crossed his arms over his chest leveling John with a glare.

"I don't think he's violent Mister cox." Kitten corrected herself as to not upset the situation further. "I think he's protective, Ace is violent." She knew the difference. Alice tended to be a little bit of a hot head, not the one to sit back and not swing. It was part of the reason she wasn't as physically abused and had never been sexually assualted as Kitten had been because more often then not she fought back at least with her father. She wasn't afraid of a fight, she never had been. "But not Harry, no he just care's a lot. I might have only known him for a week but we talk a lot. Alice likes him." She smiled. "Alice doesn't like anyone."

"I noticed." John grunted. "She sounds rather violent over the phone." He looked up at Anne who didn't have any sympathy for him. Not an ounce, she'd hardly earned Alice's trust. THe only one with Alice's trust was Harry and that was all that really mattered. Alice wouldn't come to trust the others until they proved they were trust worthy.

"She is, you have to understand sir. She's not..."Kitten frowned trying to think of a word for it. "She doesn't leave room for someone to push her around even though they still do. Where as I've only raised a fist when I had to because I was being choked, she raises a fist nearly every time she's hit. I might be a bit violent but only because I have to be." She explained and Harry looked at her they hadn't exactly talked about things such as her being choked out and having to swing on anyone. She and Harry talked about their favorite colors about what they wanted to grow up to be. What they would do in the most bizzare situations, things they loved and had in common, music, clothes, food.

"You've been choked?" John asked unable to stop the question. Harry stepped towards him and Kitten mustered up the strength to toss her body nearly over the bed to grab the back of Harry's shirt before he could advance any further on his step father.

"Yes. Several times, sometimes more than once a day. It's great." she said dryly clearly being sarcastic, Harry had stopped in his tracks as soon as he felt her tugging on the back of his shirt. "Before I got in the car to go to the airport was the last time. Oh no wait that's a lie." She paused. "Some jackass on the street the first month I was on the streets tried to choke me out because I wouldn't go home with him like some prostitue." She pulled Harry's shirt a bit. "Harry, come on. It's ok. Liking me isn't a requirement. I don't want you to hurt him to protect me. He isn't going to hurt me." she tried to reassure the boy she loved so much.

"If you know I'm not going to hurt you why do you always seem so scared of me? Have you really been choked that often?" John couldn't even begin to wrap his brain around the idea someone had choked her at all much less more than once a day. Kitten glanced at John rolling her eyes tugging Harry's shirt trying to coax him back onto the bed with her or at least away from punching his step- father.

"No, I like to lie about that." She was being sarcastic. "Sorry, sarcasm is my first language." She mumbled towards Anne and Des who hadn't been affected by her dry sarcasm. "Trust me, I remember every time. The first time to the last but thanks for your false concern." There she went with the snarky remarks again. It wasn't like her to stand up to John but he'd riled Harry up and she wasn't going to let Harry hurt someone in her name especially a family memeber. "You cause me anxiety because you judge me, you don't like me. You were telling Harry that I can't possibly know what love is because I've never been loved. The second you met me you didn't like me and that fine, most people don't." She was getting achy as she held tight onto the back of Harry's shirt. His mother was trying to get him to back up but he was still caught up in his anger.

"That's the type of self loathing behavior that's not healthy for him. I've been raised with the knowledge you can't be loved until you love yourself." John sighed and Kitten rolled her eyes again even though she hated everything that came out of his mouth. Even if he made her anxious and sad, until Harry was calm she wouldn't show an ounce of weakness. This was how she survived.

"Bullshit." Des snapped and Kitten smiled kindly at him.

"Look, you don't know shit about me. You have seen the cuts on my arms, you've seen the way I behave for hours this week and you've made up your mind." She looked back towards John. "When you've been tortured for 16 years then you can tell me about self loathing. Until then, you don't know the half of it. It's not like I sit around all day and tell Harry how much I hate myself or blame myself. It's not like we talk about my abuse. I wouldn't hurt him like that." she spat, very little respect in her tone. Kitten wanted to show Harry that she could defend herself even if he hadn't seen that side of her just yet.

"Tell him what you two do talk about," Anne offered and Kitten was smiling again though her eyes didn't reflect it. There was a fire in them that no one in the room had seen this past week.

"We had a two hour conversation last night about what was our favorite ice cream flavor." She laughed and Harry seemed to deflate a little, her laughter reassurance. "We talk about all kinds of things, like if we could sit any where in the world and find peace where would it be or what we've always wanted to do. Harry tells me about his friends and his family, talks so highly of his sister and his mum. He's a mama's boy." she teased and Anne and Des both laughed.

"He always has been. He's my baby, what can I say." His mother slipped into a chair next to Des unable to coax her sun into relaxing. Its seemed as if Kitten was the only one who could calm him at the moment. She wasn't going to get in the way. "Was it yesterday or the day before you two played a round of 100 questions? until he fell asleep?" Kitten beamed at her.

"Day before. His favorite color is pink, he's a cat person though he's always wanted a puppy. Harry loves music, his favorite subject is history in school. He's getting all A's!" Kitten hummed. "He thinks my eyes are bright and change color, that I'm tiny which isn't all together un-true. His favorite thing to eat is cookies, though he's never had oreo's which is a shame." Harry seemed too continue to relax. "He gets a sore back sometimes because one leg is slightly longer than the other and his favorite finger is his thumb. He wants to visit America some day, New york in particular. Gemma and him are close, that if he had all the money in the world he'd pay off her school debt and buy her a house and a new car. That he would do the same for his mum and you, he'd make sure his dad never had to lift a finger ever again." She was so fond as she spoke of the things she'd learned during those question. "He likes Alice, he really looks up to Des and his mum. He thinks his sister is really smart and funny though he'd never tell her. He really likes ducks because they make a funny sound, it's really cute." She smiled tugging on his shirt again. "He's passionate, doesn't ever do anything half way. The kindest soul I've ever met."

"And you're favorite color is teal, you think my eyes sparkle. You love cats because they purr but you also like puppies because the cuddle. You are in fact tiny, you're favorite fast food chain is Wendy's. You are lactose intolerant but eat ice cream and other stuff any way." Harry started to talk to her because it calmed him to do so. Though his eyes still remained on his step father. "You nicknamed Alice, Ace because you think she's your Ace in the deck. You like to wear tank tops even when it's cold, you're favorite nail polish is anything with sparkle." He couldn't help the smile forming on his face as he slowly let his anger fade. "You love fruit and you think you're bellybutton is funny shaped. I know you're favorite word and finger too but I don't think he'd like that very much." Kitten laughed.

"It's shit, and my middle finger is my favorite." She was getting tired of holding herself like this. Her body didn't want to be doing this at all. "It does look funny! It's square especially after the surgery!" Harry finally turned to look at her, his eyes nearly popping out of his head when he saw the way she was hunched over just to hold onto the back of his shirt. He quickly scrambled to help her back up on the bed climbing onto it with her if just to get her to not ever do that again. "Looks all wonky, you're sister agrees with me. We took a picture and sent it to Ace but Ace just told me I needed to stop snorting snow flakes."

"Snorting snow flakes?" Des inquired with a smile on his face curious to get to know a bit more about the girl that wasn't about her horrid background. They would learn that in time if she wished for them too. He wanted to know anything she'd offer. With the fond way she talked about his son and the look in her eyes as she talked it was clear this wasn't some teenage love affair that would fade.

"Yeah, right before that lovely woman..." She pointed to Anne. "Found me in the snow I'd been texting Ace if it was possible to snort snowflakes because I was pretty sure I just had. We decided we weren't sure if that was a thing since snow is water." Harry shook his head smiling and Anne shivered a bit at the thought of it. "It's her way of telling me I'm crazy talking again. I was pretty, well, not very with it when I was asking about the snowflake thing. She didn't find it funny at the time because I'd told her I couldn't hold on a whole lot longer but now she thinks it's hilarious."

"She does, the two of you do it. You've told her to stop snorting it as well." Harry pointed out and Kitten giggled shrugging.

"Are you sure that isn't code for like cocaine in America?" John asked and Kitten reached up a hand flipping him off.

"Alice isn't American. Well she sort of is, she's Italian dual citizenship. No, I don't snort cocaine. I've lived locked in a bed room with no windows or a bathroom, no way out. Where the hell do you think I would have gotten drugs from?" She peaked her head over Harry's side to look at John like he'd lost his mind and in all fairness, in her head he absolutely had. She had never left her house, ever. The first time she'd ever been out of the house was when she was being shipped off to London. Harry tried not to react, again it wasn't like they discussed her abuse at extended lengths. Things like the fact she'd been locked in a bed room most of her life was disturbing and heart breaking.

"I don't know where you've come from, I don't know if this Alice is a drug dealer..." John suggested and Kitten let out a feral furious noise. She would take insults about herself all day but the second you suggested Alice was anything other than the amazing human being she knew and loved, anger over came her.

"Ace is 16," Kitten snarled. "Ace is a 16 year old girl who is abused, who has saved my life. Who found me and slipped a note under the door of my cage and named me. Someone who loves me with every fiber of her being. The only person who has ever been their for me." She spat gripping onto Harry's arm, now that he was on the bed and somewhat calm she was complete fire. Alice was her world. "She's helped me learn what I know, she's helped me drive to survive how dare you. How fucking dare you insinuate that she is some criminal who would want anything but the best for me!"

"I don't know her other than the one or two times I've heard you or Harry on the phone with her." John defended himself but was taken back by Kitten's sudden anger. The female he'd heard didn't sound like another 16 year old girl, she absolutely didn't sound like an abused teenager either. To be quite honest he knew next to nothing about Alice at all. "She wasn't exactly kind and she calls Harry a pup. It's kind of insulting."

"She calls him that because he sounds like a love sick puppy." Anne easily explained. Harry had told her about the nick name the day after he'd been given it. She'd agreed with Alice on it, it was absolutely adorable that Alice had nicknamed him. "She likes Harry, you have no idea how big that is."

"Alice doesn't like any one, she takes it very seriously." Kitten set her head down on Harry's chest trying to breathe through her own anger at John's implications that her best friend and life line had been anything but her guardian angel. "Harry's special though, she likes him." She ran her hands over Harry's arm that was resting around her waist.

"Of course she likes him, he saved you from the streets..." Johng really was testing her patients to deal with someone criticizing her. She'd only been out of the streets and freezing temperatures for a week and a half, her body was still trying to thaw and cope with life.

"That has nothing to do with it. She doesn't just like Harry, she trusts Harry." Kitten stressed as if it even needed to be stressed. Anne and Des looked at each other unsure of where Kitten was going with this.

"How can you be so sure? Why would she trust him when she doesn't sound like the trusting type." John felt like he'd won some kind of argument but really he was just making himself look ignorant and mean. He was challenging a sick teenage girl that he had hardly taken the time to get to know.

"Because," Her voice got soft as she looked up at Harry. He was looking down at her, they made eye contact as she found the reassurance she needed in his eyes. "She told him." Harry's smile was a bit more shy this time. "She told you," She repeated and Harry knew exactly what she was talking about. He nodded. "She wasn't wrong to trust you. You haven't told any one." Harry nodded slowly. Kitten's face seemed to glow slightly as she looked at him a sudden warmth filling her. Harry knew who she was and where she came from and he hadn't said anything to anyone he hadn't judged her he'd just put his arms around her and continued to look at her the same.

"I wouldn't ever tell any one. She trusts me and I'm not going to break that trust or hurt you." He told her bringing his hand up to her cheek. It was a fairly intimate moment for two 16 year olds to be having with their parents around but this whole situation was fairly out of the ordinary. John was trying to come up with some kind of argument instead of paying attention to what the two teenagers were doing.

"You know who I am..."

"No, they aren't who you are. Just like hers isn't who she is." Harry leaned down to get a bit closer to her face as he kept one hand on her cheek. The eye contact they had going on was pretty intense but it was completely beautiful. Anne couldn't find it in her to break up the moment that was most likely leading to a kiss not even if she tried. She wanted them to share moments like these no matter how old or young they were. "You, you're Kitten. A beautiful, intelligent girl who has survived 16 years on her own. Who, is passionate, is constantly kind and has the most beautiful shade of hazel eyes I've ever seen." He smiled and she looked at his lips and then up to his eyes again. "You're my Kitten, my angel. That's who you are," He affirmed and heart warmed tears pooled in her eyes.

"You're my Harry, my sunshine." She murmured back nudging her face a little closer to his her eyes shyly moving away for a second. When she looked back at him her eyes had changed to a bright greenish brown, a beautiful color Harry could look at forever. "I'm in love with you, I didn't know what the feeling was I got when I met you was. I'd never felt it before but...and I know it's only been maybe two weeks but Harry...I'm in love with you." John went to say something but Anne reached over and put her hand over his mouth before he could interrupt what was happening. "Should I apologize for that?" She was completely serious with that question, discussing their love always made John so edgy. So stating that she was in fact in love with him had to be upsetting to John though she hadn't heard anything after her comment.

"Never," Harry got closer. "You know why not?" She shook her head their noses were touching at this point and Kitten's brain had officially stopped working. Her heart felt like it was racing but not in the bad sense, not the way it usually did. "Because I'm in love with you too," His voice was nearly a whisper.

He closed the gap between them, his lips making contact with hers. She tilted her head up when he kissed her, her eyes closing immediately as the feeling washed over her. She brought her other hand up to his face as well, just to make sure he was really there. Really kissing her and that she wasn't dreaming it, her body felt something it had never felt before. A sense of home, a sense of life and indescribable light, warmth. She tingled from head to toe, her pain suddenly and momentarily erased by the feeling of his lips on hers after his declaration of love for her. Alice had been right, there was absolutely nothing better than the feeling of being in love, Kitten had never thought she'd get a chance to feel it. Feeling it in person was so much more intense than she'd ever thought.

Harry was in a similar boat, it hadn't felt like this when he'd kissed Darcy. IT had been clumsy and uncomfortable. He'd felt next to nothing when they kissed, she was his first kiss and they hadn't kissed very many times. This felt like fire works were exploding inside of him, her lips were so soft against his. Her hands on his face, the emotions washing through him like a raging river. He rested one hand on her neck the other remaining around her waist. His future with her flashed behind his eyelids as the spark lit through him. Her at the alter, her pregnant with their first child, their first child in her arms, growing old with her. He could see it all, it was the most beautiful experience, the most beautiful visions he'd ever had. It was better than any dream he'd ever had, the passion exchanged was something he wanted to feel forever.

John wanted to argue as the kiss seemed to go on forever but it wasn't as if the teenagers were making out on the bed. They were sharing a very gentle kiss, nothing inappropriate about it. They'd just declared they were in love, kissing was natural after such a thing. Anne's hand fell from her husbands mouth as she looked at the two of him. Her heart bursting out of her chest, she looked at her ex husband who was smiling at the two teens. Anyone with eyes could see it, this wasn't your ordinary teenage infatuation. This was something rare, something that happened to people if they got lucky enough to find that one person in the world that was meant for them.

Anne hated the circumstances that had brought Kitten into their lives but she had no doubt Harry was who she was meant to be with. She would forever hate the people who harmed Kitten the way they had but she knew, Kitten was meant to be in their lives. She was simply grateful she'd gone to pick up Harry that day instead of letting one of the older ladies drive him home. She never would have found Kitten in time and then Harry would never get the chance of meeting his /one/ person. His other half. Slowly, extremely slowly Harry and Kitten parted. It took even longer for their eyes too open. Kitten felt herself swim in the soft green of his eyes and he felt himself lost in hers.

"You're really in love with me?" She asked quietly looking at him tears lining her eyes. They were happy tears but she was overwhelmed at the idea. In the best possible way. She hadn't ever entertained the idea she would fall in love or that she /could/ be loved. This was all so new to her, so forgien.

"I am, really, really in love with you." Harry affirmed moving his hand up to run his thumb over her bottom lip unable to help himself. She sniffled but there was a smile on her face, one reserved only for Harry that she didn't often share with others around. "I don't ever want to spend another day with out you." He added and Kitten let out a quiet and shaky laugh nodding. She felt the same.

"See, this is what I don't think is healthy." John interrupted the moment.


	10. Chapter 10

"See, this is what I don't think is healthy." John interrupted the moment. Finally pulling the teens back into the reality of what had lead up to their kissing. Kitten's smile dulled a little bit and Harry wanted to pull it back up, he was angry that his step father could erase the smile on her face. "You can't spend every day with her, you don't know what the rest of your life is going to be like. If you become a singer and get famous she can't be with you every day. Singers travel."

"Lot's of singers travel with their spouses," Anne made the argument before either one of them could. She wasn't going to let them being ridiculed or the moment be broken with out at least making an attempt to guard their love. "If she wants she could go to school on the road with him, it would be good for him to travel with someone if he gets famous. No matter what he does for a living, he doesn't have to live with out her and you implying he has to or will have to is cruel."

"She could seriously stunt his potential Anne, you know I'm not wrong." Kitten looked at Harry, he shook his head ducking down and pressing a tiny kiss to her nose. She turned her face into his neck drawing in a few deep breaths to calm herself not wanting to show weakness yet again around John.

"Stunt his potential? You're joking right?" Des was harsh getting up to go to the girl's bed side in her defense. She turned slightly when she felt him near the bed. "You'll say anything to hurt them wont you?" He was quick to defend Kitten. John huffed shaking his head.

"I'm not trying to hurt either of them. I'm trying to be realistic." He paused looking over at Harry something just dawning on him. "You know who her parents are and you haven't told any one?" John asked and Kitten's whole body tensed up unable to do anything other than tense when the subject was brought up.

"I don't recall saying that," Harry said easily pretending as if he had no idea what his step father was talking about. Kitten's hand moved to his arm her fingers digging into the flesh looking for comfort and drinking up whatever she could find.

"Harry Edward Styles, don't you play games with me young man." John was so harsh Kitten found her self drawing away from Harry and forcing her self to sit up to make eye contact with John.

"Don't talk to him like that." She snarled, fire rolling off her tongue. Warning signs flashing all over the place as she held her self tight and up right her hand still on Harry's arm. Harry was a little shocked but he refrained from moving too much and knocking her off balance. He wasn't even aware she had the kind of strength to pull her self up like that.

"He's my son, young Lady." John said firmly and Anne gasped at the tone in her husband's voice. The room was in shock. "You'd do best to be quite." No one knew how to respond. Kitten let go of Harry and turned gripping onto Des who immediatly responded. She was climbing off the bed with his aid, how she was doing any of this no one knew. Harry was scrambling off the bed worried, Kitten grabbed her IV stand and though it seemed to take tremendous strength she marched over to John. Harry rushed over grabbing her hips to help her keep on her feet but it seemed almost as if she didn't need his help. She got right up in John's face as the man sat up a little straighter in his chair.

"You think I'm going to roll over and play dead because you're an asshole?" Kitten spat. "Because I'm weak and in a hospital bed, because i've been beaten by men like you my entire life?" John opened his mouth to argue that he was nothing like the men who had beaten her but she didn't give him a chance as she pushed her finger into his chest. "You've got another thing coming if you think I'm going to sit around and let you talk to someone I love like that. YOu have another fucking thing coming if you think I'm going to shut up when I'm told. I've spent 16 years, 16 being told to shut up or be quiet. I didn't then and I'm not going to now." Harry was a bit worried she was going to fall over.

"I didn't tel-"

"Why do you think they sent me away?" Kitten didn't waiver and she completely cut John off when he went to speak. "They couldn't kill me and I wouldn't shut up. Don't you dare insult me like that. Don't you EVER talk to Harry like that again." Harry and his mother traded looks as Kitten gave another insight on her life and why she might have been sent away in the first place.

"He's going to get in trouble, it's my job as a parent to keep him in check. He knows where you came from and if you've told him I think we deserve the same respect." John sighed backing down because the small female didn't seem to be letting up at all and her knuckles were going white with how hard she was gripping the IV stand she'd dragged with her.

"You want me to die? Is that what you want?" John immediately shook his head.

"Absolutely not, I'm simply asking who your parents are." He tried weakly to make his argument but Kitten snarled at him again.

"The answer to that would get me killed. Harry knows that, Alice knows that. You're wife is happy not knowing, the doctor is happy not knowing so you can shut up and live with it. Or get the hell away from me. I am not will not ever fucking speak their name again." She was running out of breath as she stood there to confront Des but that was about the time Harry was snapping out of his shock. He put his arms fully around Kitten's waist taking her whole weight onto his body.

"Enough," Des said quickly. "That's enough. Anne I think we need to talk about moving her into my house as it seems your husband doesn't support her." He looked towards Harry moving over to their side holding his arms up. Harry eased Kitten into his arms, where he slowly picked her up bridal style and carried her back to the bed laying her down. Harry climbed back onto the bed with her and Des covered them both with the blanket. "I'm not going to let him harm you or return you wherever you came from. I promise you that, no matter what. I don't have tolerance for his ignorance and I won't ever ask you to tell me anything you don't want to share." He promised and Kitten nodded slightly.

"I think that you may be right, as much as I hate the idea because I know that if she isn't in the house Harry won't be either...I think John seems to have shown her he isn't trust worthy." Anne sighed as if John wasn't sitting right next to her. He looked mildly offended.

"You can make him stay in the house Anne you are his mother." John pointed out but Anne was actively ignoring him at this point.

"I think she'd be most comfortable in your house. Harry will be less stressed out knowing she is safe with you." Anne told Des who agreed with her. Harry smiled at his mother glad she understood what he was feeling and how terrified Kitten was with all of this even if she didn't show it. "I don't want either of them concerned or stressing. Harry has Finals coming up and he wouldn't be able to focus with out her."

"Agreed. I have more room in my house as well. If this Alice shows up and needs a home I'd be able to provide that as well." Kitten's eyes lit up as she looked towards Des.

"Really? You'd do that for her, even though you don't know here and you met her when I was upset?" She asked a bit breathlessly, amazed by Des' kindness. It was something she hadn't experienced, these people were so kind and loving, it wasn't something she'd ever come across. She was on the losing end of things, all her life. Alice was too but Alice had experienced a tiny bit of love once when she came across William and his mother.

"Of course sweetheart," Des smiled.


	11. Chapter 11

"She...She'll need a home. You won't judge her right? She's a little hot headed...she means well I swear she's just protective." Kitten rushed out and Des laughed smiling at her.

"I'd never judge her. I promise. It's going to be alright with me around ok?" He promised and for the first time in her life she trusted a grown man when he spoke. She'd never had a father figure and there had never been a kind word spoken to her by one, lies and harm inflicted upon her by every grown man she'd ever met in her life.

"With that in mind...Will you do me the honor of being my girlfriend Kitten?" Harry asked nosing at Kitten's cheek. She blushed nodding her head before hiding her face into his neck so no one else could see her blushing. John just sighed like this was the most exhausting thing he'd ever experienced,Anne glared at her husband like he'd lost his mind. "Thank you,I think you should get some sleep. Doctor Sanders said you're body is exhausted." He told her and Kitten whined a little bit.

"It is," she admitted so quietly none of the adults could hear. "I'm sorry if your step dad hates you because of me." Harry shook his head touching her neck as softly as possible.

"I don't care what he thinks. Get some sleep beautiful. I'll wake you up if Alice calls ok?" Kitten nodded letting her eyes finally close tucked up against Harry's neck it was her favorite place to be. The adults exhanged looks in agreement to be quiet as to let the young girl sleep on the bed in peace. Harry flipped on the tv as Kitten fell into a deeper sleep her grip on him loosening a little bit. She hated sleeping it was her enemy, she lived her pain during her sleep though being next to Harry helped. Hearing his heart beat always echoed into her dreams. Sometimes there were things she couldn't escape.

The nightmare she experienced that day was one she'd never forget. She was being beaten. Her arm bent at an unnatural angle and she was being pushed towards the stove. Her father pressed her arm down against the hot stove but she didn't scream. When she looked around the room for help she saw John but he wasn't coming to her aid. Instead he was holding Harry back with his hand over his step son's mouth to keep him from screaming. Kitten could feel it as her skin burned before it was being ripped off the stove and she was being thrown against the wall. She saw a knife coming out of her way but even as that made contact she slipped away. Her father was furious, he couldn't believe she was still breathing and she wasn't screaming. She could hear John's voice telling Harry not to scream or he'd see too it Kitten got worse. Her body was tossed to the floor and a chair collided with her side, when she made no noise she was grabbed up by her hair and thrown back into her 'cell' the door slamming shut behind her, the light left off leaving her in complete darkness.

"They have money. Let them do as they please. It's worth it." She could hear John's voice echoing from somewhere in the room but she couldn't see him. Harry's cries made her chest squeeze painfully as she fought to keep herself alive. She'd had a dream like this before but it never involved anyone ever being there and able to help her. It never involved Harry's broken sobs as she bled out on the floor of her cell. Sometimes it involved Alice's furious screams or soft singing as she encouraged Kitten to 'just hold on a little longer'.

Her eyes snapped open trying not to gasp her hand tightening on Harry's shirt as she tried to shake the nightmare from her head. She untucked her head from against his neck, the hospital lights were dimmed and everyone appeared to be asleep and John was no longer in the room. There was cartoons on the tv and Kitten felt a tiny bit of relief looking up at Harry his face peaceful as he slept. Slowly she laid back down before falling back into a light sleep. The nightmare happened over and over and each time it seemed to get worse. By the end of her third week in the hospital she would panic every time Harry got off the bed when John was around. She'd started crying in her sleep and begging, Harry had begun to wake up every time she did waiting to tell her it was ok and she was safe.

She felt breathless and scared like she was waiting for Harry to be ripped away from her. It didn't feel like she could live with out him. Then again she wouldn't be able to live if something had happened to Alice and there had been radio silence for the last 48 hours from her. Kitten was so worried she wasn't sleeping and although Harry would never admit it he was scared to death as well. He didn't want anything to happen to Alice, he wanted to meet her. He didn't know if Kitten would survive with out her. As they neared 72 hours of no sound from Alice, Kitten was a mess of tears insisting on watching the news every second of the day knowing if Alice was found dead it'd be all over the news.

"Um," A nurse peaked her head in looking at the two teens on the bed and over to where Des was sitting with Anne, John and Gemma. Kitten looked at the nurse her eyes red rimmed and another sob ready and waiting to burst out of her chest. "There's a young lady by the name of Ace asking to be let back? Is that alright?" Kitten didn't believe her.

"Absolutely, please." Harry gasped feeling a wait lifted from his shoulders. The nurse nodded disappearing and shouting could be heard.

"I swear to fuck you people! I had the ok from the doctor 20 minutes ago!" Kitten knew that sound but she was delirious from sleep or that was what she was telling herself. After another second a young girl with long brown hair and soft brown eyes appeared in the doorway. She was wearing expensive looking boots and a leather jacket, dark sunglasses on her face. She was beautiful and she had a bit of an Italian accent. "Well hello there darling!" The girl smiled at Kitten ignoring everyone else in the room and if Harry was honest, Alice looked a bit older than Kitten. He also wasn't sure it was real or if he was sleep delerious.

"Ace? Ace is...is it really you?" Kitten began to sob, Alice jogged over to the bed taking Kitten's face in her hands quickly. Harry was still staring at her not completely convinced she was really there. "Am I dead?" Kitten's cries were heart breaking, Harry helped ease Kitten up into a sitting position. ALice quickly put her arms around Kitten's waist and tucked her into her body.

"Shhh, no you aren't dead Kitten. You're alive and I'm here. It took me a bit longer than expected to get here. I ran into someone and they wanted to make sure I was fed and got here safely." She promised holding Kitten and rocking her a bit back and forth. "Shh, it's alright. It's ok...It's ok." no one dared to speak and interrupt what was happening. It was an interesting experience to see the way Alice just held Kitten as tight as she could, Kitten holding on just as tightly. "I'm ok, it's alright." It took a few more minutes before Kitten's sobs became sniffles.

"I just...I thought. You got so quiet and I thought...I thought you died." Alice let out a gentle sigh, after another moment she eased the girl back onto her hospital bed to look her in the eyes.

"I'm sorry, my phone was being tracked by my parents. I had to crush it, I have a new one a nice man named Dan got it for me. We just haven't gotten a chance to turn it on. He had to go meet with the phone company today." Alice apologized wiping Kitten's tears with her fingers. Harry noticed as he looked at Alice that she was skinny, a bit too skinny if you asked him. It didn't look healthy. "They wanted to be able to tote that they were 'trying to get me back' or whatever by giving people updates of where I was To do like a 180 of what they have been saying." Kitten sniffled and rubbed at her eyes trying to calm down. "I'm here now and I'm safe." she promised.

"What if you're parents are worried about you?" John broke the little bubble Kitten and Alice were in. Both girl's heads whipped towards him, it always made Harry's neck hurt with the speed the young teenager could move her head. It seemed to be whenever his step dad spoke that Kitten moved with such quick motions you almost couldn't see her.

"Who the fuck are you and what the fuck do you think you know about me?" Alice snarled quickly going from gentle and comforting to complete fury. Her small body bowing up puffing her chest up and ready to fire at will. Harry was impressed with her already, she didn't show any kind of fear of John as Kitten had. Instead she seemed ready to fight anyone who get in her way.

"Do you speak to your mother with that mouth?" John hissed. Harry could feel Kitten on the verge of hysteria, he kept his arms around her waist pressing his nose to her temple to try and help keep her from falling over that edge.

"Yeah, as a matter of fact I fucking did. She was an abusive fucking bitch, if you've got a fucking problem with how I talk you can get the fuck out." John was completely horrified by her use of words. Anne and Des looked a bit disturbed but were trying not to outwardly judge the girl for her word choices. After all they didn't know what she'd been through it wouldn't be fair of them to judge her or scold her. Gemma covered her mouth trying not to laugh.

"I wouldn't push the young lady dear..." Anne tried to encourage her husband to quiet down but she was mildly worried it wasn't going to work and he was going to wind Alice up further. They hadn't even made formal introductions and he had Alice on edge.

"I'm not..."He sighed throwing his hands up in the air causing Kitten to flinch and turn inward towards Alice. Harry could feel his own anger biting at his chest but he remained as calm as possible as to not instigate Kitten's fears. "Fine."

"Fine," Alice mocked. "I don't scare so you're out of luck old man." She snapped towards him her hand now laced with Kitten's stroking over her knuckles. "Your hands are so cold," Alice's attention turned back to Kitten going back to ignoring everyone in the room.

"The doctor says it's cause I was outside so long." Kitten mumbled towards the girl. Alice looked so sad when Kitten explained why she was so cold. It broke her heart that she'd been so unable to help her best friend and other half when she needed it best. "He says I'm getting better though, he might let me go home soon." she smiled even if it was a bit lopsided. Alice returned the gentle grin.

"Where is home now?" Alice asked softly her eyes never leaving Kitten's face. It had been much too long since they'd seen each other physically. there had been one or two instances where Kitten's parents and her parents had a meeting and alice would sneak off to talk with Kitten under her door.

"S' with Harry." Finally the girl's eyes moved away from Kitten's face and up to Harry who felt like he should hold his hands up in defence and promise he wasn't there to hurt Kitten and he'd never let it happen. It took a second before Alice sighed.

"You must be pup," He blushed, nodding and fighting the urge to hide his face against Kitten. Kitten turned towards him her eyes sparkling a bit, it was a beautiful look on her face. One he hadn't seen in days, one he hadn'tseen since the nightmares began. "I'm Alice as I'm sure you've figured out by now. It's nice to meet you in person," Alice offered him a shake of the hand. "The doc says you've been taking good care of her, says she's better when you're around. I'm glad she's found you." IT seemed so odd to hear the stark contrast she spoke to Harry with not dropping one f bomb as she had with his step dad.

"It's nice to see you're ok. I was worried," Kitten squeaked a bit not knowing Harry had worried at all about Alice. It warmed her in a way her sleep delerioius self nearly started crying again. Alice let out a small laugh.

"I am, I found someone along the way which is why I'm a day or so late. I wasn't really in danger at any given time. I'm not nearly in the amount of danger Kitten's ever been in." She reached rubbed Kitten's arm, a silent way of apologizing to her for not protecting her.

"Lies, your parents were just as bad...if they knew where you were they'd drag you back." Kitten whined tugging on Alice's hand. "Don't tell the man who spoke to you when you came in what your last name is." Tears were building in her eyes again. "He'll make you go back."

"My parents don't want me back. They have already given the media the story I've left home and because they have other children to look after and I was so rebellious that if I'm sited it's best no one approach me." Alice smirked. "I'm a dangerous rebel they don't want returned home and because I'm legally an adult here they can't make me go back to them. Don't worry, I only worry about you. They wouldn't take you back, they wouldn't take me back. You're parents would kill you if they knew we were together." Alice's eyes welled up a bit before she took Kitten's face in her hands. "Can I tell you something? Please don't start crying again...I'm terribly concerned about how sick you look. You and pup both look like you haven't slept in days as it is."

"We haven't." Harry admitted and Kitten huffed because of course he would tell Alice they hadn't been sleeping. It was supposed to be a secret in her mind at least. She liked to keep those kind of things secret as long as she could though Alice usually saw through her.

"You're parents have showed up in the media saying that they were fostering a lost and dangerous girl child who has commit suicide in their midst only leaving a note blaming them as holding sole responsibility for her death." Kitten didn't know what to think. "They have a fucking death certificate for you even though they've never given you a fucking name. They have sunken to yet a new low. Coming up with a death certificate to a child that never existed to them." She was overwhelmed, tears didn't feel like an option and she wasn't sure why it hurt to know that they had killed her off even though she'd never been alive to them. "I'm sorry babe, I'm so sorry."

"I didn't though...I didn't kill myself. I..." Kitten was struggling with words. "I..I mean I almost died but...but not because I was going to kill myself." Alice nodded, she knew all to well the danger Kitten had been in, the danger she'd still be in if her parents found out the two of them were together at any given point. It would draw too much attention to Kitten, any attention in any public fourem would be too much for the family to bare. They would be down right homicidal with rage.

"I know you weren't going to kill yourself sweetheart." Alice pulled up a chair and sat down maintaning her hold on Kitten's hand rubbing her fingers over her knuckles. "But, it's dangerous for you out there. It's always been dangerous but it's even more dangerous right now. They wouldn't handle you being linked to my name well. Even if the world doesn't know who you are, they know and it would be too much." The sick girl on the bed nodded a bit numbly.

"Surely no one can be that heinous." John regretted his words immediately as both Harry and Alice looked at him in fury.


	12. Chapter 12

"You don't like me, I know that. Please stop, please just stop." Kitten was starting to shake and Alice wanted felt desperate to stop it so she let go of her best friend's hand and stormed towards John grabbing him by the collar of his shirt and making sure to get in his face. For being a sixteen year old girl she was terribly frightening to him.

"You're a fucking dick. You know that? You've got no right to be so fucking self righteous like there isn't parents out there torturing their kids every day." She spat. John was still looking at her, he was starting to feel like he'd heard her voice before, or at the very least seen her face. "She was once hit with a frying pan while it was hot in the rib cage, just to see if she'd scream. Thrown down stair cases, tied up, baseball bats, starved, they tried to drown her more than once simply because they want her to scream in pain, give them satisfaction that the were causing her pain. Just to fucking see if she'd stop breathing and you know what you fucking worthless piece of shit?" Alice snarled and John shook his head slowly realizing that he knew exactly who she was. "She's didn't scream, she didn't cry and she sure as hell didn't die. Don't you ever speak like her parents ever did her any fucking favors."

"They sent me away. They were nice enough to do that for me," Kitten felt like her own voice wasn't coming from her at this point. Everything felt a bit far away, sometimes she defended her family as if she'd ever been wrong. Alice's heart ached endlessly for her, it wasn't like it was the first time Kitten had tried to justify her family's behavior but it never got less painful. Harry felt a little caught off guard by it himself though he was still trying to digest what Alice had just shared about what kitten had been through in her life time.

"So you could starve or be killed by some stranger or hell even the elements. They weren't 'nice enough' to give you that. They didn't know how else to kill you." Alice sighed and Kitten shrugged it seemed like a favor in her sleep delirium. Why they had sent her away to die at the mercy of mother nature was kinder than her last vision of the world being dying at their hands. "You haven't slept in days Kit, I know you feel like maybe it was a favor, some kind of mercy. It wasn't, god I wish it was. It would have showed some kind of humanity. I wish I could have protected you." She was still holding John by the shirt but her head had turned to look to Kitten.

"You did though, you protected me from all the storms long enough for Harry's mum to find me." Alice dropped her hand from Johns shirt looking confused at her best friend. "Every time I was scared or it was raining so hard I couldn't find a spot to stay completely dry. You were there, you held my hand and sometimes you hovered next to me scaring off people. You were there, even at the house...in my cell I could hear you. Ace you've always been there." Alice wanted to cry not knowing Kitten had been having sleep delusions that she was with her and that it had been enough to keep her alive. She'd never really known she had enough power in the world to will her spirit to be with Kitten to protect her when she couldn't physically be there. To know God had granted her that kindness was overwhelming.

"Oh Kitten," Alice felt a bit breathless. "I love you so much." She choked down her tears not liking John enough to be emotional around him. She still didn't know anyone's name at the moment but she didn't really care at the moment. "How long has it been since you or pup slept?" Harry loved the nickname, the slight fondness in her eyes when she mentioned him in the same sentence as Kitten.

"Dunno. I have these nightmares...it's one nightmare but...but it gets worse everytime I sleep. John...he's there now." Harry looked towards his step father angry and confused.

"Which one of these is John and is it a good thing he's there?" Alice asked having a feeling the man she'd been spitting in the face of was this John but she wasn't for sure. Kitten's voice was too laced with confusion and fear for her to be able to tell if it was good or bad.

"It's so bad...he's there and Harry's there...but he's hurting Harry. He's making Harry watch what's going on, threatening to make me hurt worse if Harry tries to stop anything." Everyone in the room felt a bit ill with this revelation of what exactly she'd been experiencing when she slept. "I hear Harry crying, Ace. I can hear him crying so much, sometimes John takes my phone. In these nightmares...he takes it and makes Harry call you and tell you I'm dead so you wont look for me because...because my parents have money and he wants Harry to marry a smart rich girl. Ace I'm not a smart rich girl." Alice let go of John's shirt still unsure of who John was but so furious and ill at these visions Kitten had been having that she was unable to handle herself. Her own hands shaking as she listened.

"Oh baby," Harry said softly rubbing his thumb across her cheek. She looked at him a semi crazy look in her eyes. He felt the same, a bit crazy. They hadn't slept enough for him to stomach this kind of information. "Is that why you've started to hyperventilate when I get off the bed? I knew I was in the nightmares because you cry for me but I didn't know..." Kitten shoved her face under his chin her whole body shaking. Alice backed herself up until she'd hit her chair kind of falling into it stunned.

"He makes you leave me...I'm afraid I'll wake up and it'll be real. That you being here is a dream and I'll wake up and be at the house at the hands of everyone. I can't go back, I can't afford for this to be fake. I can't." She panicked quietly into Harry's neck.

"It's not fake, I promise. He isn't going to take me away from you. That's why we're gonna stay with my dad. He's going to keep you safe, just like Alice and I will." Harry pressed a kiss to her forehead holding her even tighter if it was possible. He glanced up at Kitten's best friend worried at how quiet she'd fallen and suddenly worried about how pale she was.

"He's right," the other teenager in the room's voice was solid as a rock even though she looked like she could fall apart at any second. "I won't let this John hurt you or take pup away from you ok? I have a friend who is going to help with that I'll introduce you to him later ok? I want you to get some sleep now that I'm here you might not have the nightmare." Kitten looked over at her cautiously. "it's worth a shot right? You look like you might be seeing three of me at the moment."

"'m seein' one of you but it's all blurry like when I get sleepy with Harry and everyone else is around. I can't make any one out right." she admitted and Alice let out a small broken laugh.

"I'm sure. I'm here now, I want you to try and get some sleep ok for me?" Kitten pouted before sighing her eyes heavy and feeling so comforted knowing Alice was there and in the room that she couldn't really fight the suggestion. She nodded slowly pushing her face into Harry's neck again and closed her eyes, it wasn't long before she'd fallen asleep against him. "You should get some sleep too Harry, I'm here and nothing is going to hurt her now. I'll stand guard," she promised though Harry wasn't as quick to accept her bartering.

"I'm a bit to angry to actually sleep at the moment. I appreciate the offer though," Alice didn't even bother to try and counter his argument. She was a bit too angry to think straight much less argue with his anger. It was completely justified.

"Understandable. So, whose who in here?" She asked looking away from Harry and over to the room again still trying to pick out whose John. "I promise I won't break anything when you tell me who John is at the moment I might later...when she's awake. I don't want to wake her up by getting violent as much as I'd like too." Harry laughed he knew the feeling.

"I'm Gemma, Harry's older sister." Alice eyed her for a moment sizing her up and trying to recall what Kitten had said about the girl. Not ever having heard a bad word about Gemma she nodded. "This is my mum, Anne. She's who found Kitten." She did soften almost completely at the dark haired woman looking kindly at her. "Sitting to her left is my and Harry's biological father and where Kitten will be staying is Des."

"That leaves you to be John, good to know I was right." Her words were bitter and furious but calm all at the same time. "It's disgusting you know, that you've showed up in her nightmares that way. You've got her pretty convinced she's going to be shipped back to her shit hole..." She felt so much anger on Kitten's behalf as she stared the man down angrily. "Go ahead, I can see it on your face. You know damn well who I am." Harry looked at Alice and then too his step father.

"You're a Alice Reign Whitlock..." John stared at her. The rest of the room traded looks, of course they'd heard of the family. You couldn't change a channel with out seeing something advertising the family, their products and names were everywhere. "You're the daughter they've always talked about being just this edge of sane... but you always looked so sweet, so young and kind. You were the face of their brand."


	13. horrors

"I've never been kind and if you ever mention my last name or tell anyone I'm here and near Kitten I'll break your fucking neck." John wasn't dumb enough to second guess the teenager. "That goes for anyone in this room. She'll die, they will send someone to kill her and if that isn't enough incentive they'll kill Harry as well. They aren't merciful people."

"You're family? The whitlocks are so very kind to everyone. I've heard such good things about them. They give so much of their money to charities." He gaped at Alice who simply crossed her arms and rolled her eyes.

"And starve their daughter when she doesn't say what they want her too." She scoffed adding to the list of things John was stating. "They don't give half as much as they tell the world they do. They don't give a shit about anyone, they'd sooner stab you to death then lend a helping hand. They had a chance to save Kitten and they didn't. That should say more than enough."

"What?" Harry asked confused and Alice looked back at him deflating a bit.

"Her family offers her up like a token to anyone their entering into business with. They don't tell the people that she's their daughter. Simply insure it would be anonymous should they choose to use their 'token of bidding' for a few days. As long as she doesn't leave the house." Harry covered his mouth puking a little in his mouth and Gemma ran out of the room to a bathroom near the room to actually throw up. "My parents turned them down. Told them it was better I not be exposed to someone else, I was enough of a problem."

"This poor child..." Anne resisted the urge to rush to Kitten's bed side and hold the girl for the rest of forever to keep her safe from the world. "No one is going to speak your name, I won't let her parents have the luxury of knowing she's alive and I won't let your parents have the victory of being the reason for her death." Alice smiled half halfheartedly at the adult. It was strange to meet an adult who actually gave a shit about Kitten.

"You come from so much money why would you want to leave?" John seemed to be stuck on the idea of money and her patients were running thin with this man.

"Wow you're shallow. I hope you don't talk about money like that around Kitten, I know you've at least sort of mentioned it if you're in her fucking nightmare." She spat towards the adult.

"He knows she's from money. Kitten's told him that her parents have a lot of money, he's kind of stuck on it. I had an ex-girlfriend who has wealthy parents. He brought her up around Kitten, talked about her picture perfect family." Harry told Alice probably over informing her but no longer caring to spare his step fathers impending heat from the girl. "I lost it on him climbed off the bed to get in his face, ever since that day she's been having those nightmares."

"Nice, you've contributed to the mental torment she's suffered for 16 years. Does it make you feel like more of a man?" John's head nearly turned red at the accusation that he'd consciously contributed Kitten's pain and that he enjoyed it. Des smirked liking the way the girl was so quick to mouth off at John throwing the man completely off his guard.

"Don't you dare talk to-"

"ooooh so scary," Alice cut him off her arms over her chest. Harry shook his head looking down at the girl in his arms kissing the top of her head. "You don't get it do you?" She laughed at John who was about two seconds from exploding. "That scar on the man that calls himself my father, the one on his cheek across his face. The jagged one that they tell the world came from him being jumped while trying to do charity?" John nodded not knowing where she was going with it. They'd all seen the news stories, they all saw the scar, it was hard to miss the scar. Harry had always wondered if the scar was real or not because he'd always thought there was something 'off' with those people. He was glad to know he was right. "That would be my handy work."

"What?" John was gaping at Alice who simply looked smug. "Ho..how?!"

"Well, lets see I misspoke in an interview that morning because I had been hungry after being starved for a few days. Straying from the script I'm given is one of the worst things I can do you know." She shrugged not at all impressed with the horror on John's face as she spoke. IT had been a long week that week, she hadn't even meant to go off script but she had been hungry and exhausted. They hadn't given her enough time to memorize the script much less get it right, on the spot when the interviewer strayed from questions she routinely answered. "Any way, they were pissed. It was the second interview I'd fucked up in their eyes and my parents insisted something had to be done. I needed to be punished to realize the severity of saying something they didn't TELL me to say and since starving me wasn't working..."

"I...I still don't kno.."

"If you would shut up I'd finish the story yeah?" Alice spat towards John though she kept herself as calm as possible so not to wake the sleeping girl. Harry was starting to fall asleep as well, finally knowing that Alice was safe and so was Kitten. "He hit me, hard as he could. I have razor sharp reflexes, when I hit the counter in the kitchen I grabbed the first thing I could get my hands on. It was a pizza cutter, why it was on the counter I don't know. I'm not usually allowed out of my own isolation tank." She shrugged. "He went to hit me again and I slammed it into his face with all my force dragging it across his cheek," She smirked at the memory. "It was impressive. I hit bone, They were so shocked. I told them if they ever laid a hand on me again not only would I attack back but I would tell the media what happened."

"Whoa, you're pretty bad ass." Gemma finally came back into the room rubbing her mouth still feeling a bit sick at what they'd been told.

"Less of a badass and more of a physco actually."


	14. Chapter 14

"Less of a badass and more of a physco actually." Alice hummed sighing when she noticed Harry's eyes had finally closed and he was asleep with Kitten who seemed peaceful. It was a sight Alice wasn't sure she was ever going to get to see, more so on Kitten's part then Harry's. She had lived in terror that Kitten was going to die before she ever got to her, to see her on a hospital bed in the loving arms of someone was never something she'd imagined. She couldn't even begin to express how thankful she was that Kitten was not only alive but safe in Harry's arms. "Thank you," she kept her eyes on Kitten and Harry but her words were directed towards Anne. "for everything, even if your husband is a raging dick..."

"You don't have to thank me love," Anne said softly standing up and approaching Alice. Alice seemed a bit more hesitant towards the woman then Kitten ever had.

"I do. You didn't have to save her, she was minutes maybe seconds from dying. You didn't have to take on the responsibility of rescuing her but you did. Not only did you...but you're still here." Alice let out a soft chuckle shaking her head. "You're here, you care about her and you aren't trying to discourage your son from loving her."

"I would never do such a thing. Just because my husband doesn't seem to understand it or care for it, I would never ask my son to not love someone." Anne sat down on the bed with out disturbing Kitten or Harry at all, looking at Alice.

"You could though, just as your husband has done. She's troubled, we both are." Alice was quiet and her larger than life personality seemed to shrink a bit. "We aren't easy to love...we don't really know much about it but I can see it on her face and hear it in her voice when she talks to him or about him." She looked up to Kitten and then to Anne. "She is in love with him, she feels it deep in her bones." Anne smiled brightly. "He loves her too."

"He was gone for her the second he laid eyes on her." Anne said fondly looking over at her son. "I don't find her difficult to love and I'm sure I won't find you hard to love either. " a frown came over the older woman's face. "You will be staying right?"

"Yeah, I'll be staying." Alice nodded leaning back in her chair.

"You don't have any place to stay!" John snapped and Alice flipped him off.

"I told you, she could stay with me just like Kitten will be after she is discharged from the hospital. Stop acting like we'd throw her out on her ass." Des sneered and Alice laughed.

"That would be really nice of you. I was going to stay with the family I met up with but they are already a full house. I mean they've invited me to stay but I don't know if I'm a good fit for a family setting with younger kids...just yet at least." Alice mumbled to her self thinking about the family.

"Whose the boy you are going to bring around later and introduce them too?" Gemma wondered and Alice smiled more so at the floor then ay anyone else. "Is he from that family."

"Yeah...yeah he is." Anne saw that same look of hope on Alice's face when the boy was mentioned that she had when Kitten had first laid eyes on Harry. "He's dropping his sisters off at her friends and then going to pick up my phone with his step dad. He'll be here after that, he's a good guy. He stepped in where his mum would be if she were still alive." tears pooled in Alice's eyes. "She died last year of cancer, she was a good woman."

"Well I can't wait to meet him," Anne smiled patting Alice's shoulder. Though Alice flinched a bit away from the touch but that was completely normal for her. Kind touch wasn't something she was used to, she needed to train herself to breathe a bit more and let thing happen when she knew there was no threat. However Alice was used to living as if there wasn't an actual threat happening constantly. It was quiet for about two hours while Harry and Kitten slept, Alice looked at the time standing up and stretching her legs.

"I'm going to go check if my...person is here yet." She hummed stepping out of the hospital room. Anne looked at John and then at Des shaking her head.

"Don't you dare take tone with this boy. I don't know who he is but I know he's important I can see it on her face. John, I swear." Anne scolded her husband quickly. She didn't want him to scare away this new boy though she had a nagging feeling this boy wouldn't be one to be scared away easily either. If he loved Alice there was no way he was afraid of a little spice and sass.

"He's not my son, I don't need to worry about their love or whatever. If she's stunting his growth that's his father's problem not mine. I have my own problem to worry about." John snapped at his wife and Des really wanted to reach over and punch his ex-wife's new husband. It wasn't fair he treated them like they were stupid just because they were young. He didn't know just how much life had been lived in those young teenagers.

"She isn't a problem and if that's how you feel you shouldn't be anywhere around her." Gemma huffed and John glared at her but the growl Des let out quickly fixed the glare on John's face. Gemma was Des' little girl and he would protect her with his life.

"William, you didn't have to bring food." The adults could hear the soft fond voice of Alice. The same soft voice she'd used for Harry and Kitten.

"Well I wanted you're best friend to like me and I mean she is in the hospital. I thought food is the way to anyone's heart so...I brought food. That's ok right?"Anne already loved the boy and she hadn't even met him yet, just simply heard that he wanted to be liked and his way of introducing himself was to bring food.

"She's going to love you any way but she'll appreciate the food too." Alice reassured him. Taking one of the bags from him she lead him into the room. Turning around she set the food bag on the counter and then took the other bag from him and setting that on the counter too. She looked around the room, the smell of food was starting to wake Harry and Kitten. Harry's eyes blinking slowly as he tried to wake up.

"Well...shit I don't think I brought enough food for everyone." The blue eyed man standing next to Alice said as he took in the people in the room. He hadn't been aware of how many of them there were, just that there would be more than one person there. That a family had taken in her friend and was taking turns seeing her in the hospital.

"It's quite alright, we have already eaten well... most of us have and the one who hasn't doesn't need to eat." Des snapped towards John because he was the only one of them who hadn't snacked or had some kind of food for the day. William looked towards Des a bit startled by the anger between the adults.

"um..." William frowned looking at Alice who simply shook her head. Harry finally woke up completely, his eyes registering someone new in the room. Kitten was still in somewhat of a sleep haze unable to fully wake up and registering what was going on. It'd been a long time since they had slept, so it wasn't as if it was abnormal for Kitten to only be sort of awake. Harry was wide awake so that he could keep her safe, that was enough and Alice was around surely that was contributing to Kitten's soft state.

"Hey there pup," Alice smiled at Harry who squinted at her for a second like he wasn't sure he was as awake as he wanted to be. William looked towards Alice a little confused as well, he'd heard her talk about someone called pup and he supposed he could see why she called him that. He looked a bit like an over grown puppy. "You can go back to sleep, it's alright he's not a threat."

"'m fine. I don't need sleep." Harry mumbled nudging his face slightly against Kitten's head. She was still lazily blinking her eyes to try and wake up a bit more. However, Harry talking always made her feel surrounding in safety and love so she found it easier to sleep and a bit harder to actually wake up.

"Sure you don't," she rolled her eyes but Harry stuck his tongue out at her. "Is she going back to sleep?"Alice asked looking at Harry who looked down towards Kitten who was still working her hardest to wake up.

"I think she's trying to wake up actually?" Harry brought his hand up and brushed the hair off her face his warm finger tips always feeling nice against her skin which always felt cold in the room or while she was asleep. The girl in the hospital bed hummed quietly trying to roll her body a bit more into Harry's grasp instead of where she was laying.

"Kit, go back to sleep." Kitten whined at Alice's not so subtle suggestion. She gripped Harry's shirt and mumbled something that no one but Harry had actually made out.

"She says and I quote...Make me..." Harry was trying not to chuckle and the soft sleepy girl against his body was smiling though it was quiet lazy. Her eyes were closed but she wasn't quite going back to sleep just resigning herself to not being fully with it.

"How about I bargain with you?" Kitten tilted her head to look at Alice but she couldn't get her eyes open enough to really make out anyone but her best friend and other half. "If you go back to sleep, I'll feed your pup-"

"He's a human being not a dog!" John snapped but this time instead of there being one angry teenage boy in the room there were two because the boy Alice had brought into the room was all sharp edges and not a n ounce of sympathy on his face. Kitten's eyes started to open more when John had snapped but Alice had caught on before she had started to get upset. She took her best friend's face in her hands.

"I'll feed him and I'll talk to the doctor about letting you go home. The person I want you to meet his mum was a nurse, so I think I can talk the doctor into letting you go to a place that isn't a hospital bed if your well enough to not needing to be in one." She promised quickly and that was the case, Alice had brought it up to the doctor already when she'd talked to him on the phone once or twice. The idea of her being able to take her home where she wouldn't be so stressed out. He'd seemed open to it if he could be convinced she'd be taken care of.

"Promise? and you won't let..." Kitten mumbled quietly not finishing the sentence because she was too tired to try and defend herself from John's wrath again.

"I won't let any one at all take Harry away from you ok?" Alice kissed Kitten's forehead, the tired teenager nodded slowly and let Alice climb up on the bed a bit to adjust her against Harry. "There, now he can eat and you can sleep. Off to sleep you go you little polar cat...?"

"S'not a thing Ace..." Harry had refocused his energy when Alice had helped Kitten up on the bed and rearranged the two of them while making the deal. The tiny amount of sass and relief in the girl he'd come to know was bringing overwhelming bouts of warmth to his chest. He grew more and more in love with her every single day he spent with her, Harry had no idea he was capable of this kind of love and passion for someone.

"If it isn't it should be," he teased and Kitten giggled. "Go to sleep, I'll be here I promise." he murmured pressing his lips to the top of her head and pulling her in even though she couldn't get any closer. IT didn't stop him from trying. There was a moment of quietness where he was sure she'd gone back to sleep but Alice was still hushing everyone as she began to look through the food. He felt a small tug on the bottom of his shirt. "You're supposed to be sleeping," he scolded when he felt the tug.

"I love you," She tilted her head up with a little effort to look at him the best she could. "Can I have a kiss before I go to sleep?" Harry let out a small laugh, craning his neck at a bit of an odd angle he brushed their lips together before committing to it fully and pressing his lips to hers in a kiss.

"I love you too, my lips are yours." she smiled re-tucking herself into his body and finally falling back to sleep. When he looked up at the room again all eyes were on him. Alice especially had turned to look at him and then down at where Kitten was laying, after a few moments she let out a soft sigh.


	15. Chapter 15

"She's asleep," Harry nodded as if Alice needed confirmation. "If I hadn't promised her you would eat I would tell you to go back to sleep too." she scolded Harry but he simply stuck his tongue out at her as if that was going to stop her from caring about how he was taken care of.

"Whatever," Harry drawled. "Whose your friend?" he asked feeling like he already had a good idea about who this person was. He could tell from the way that the boy stood next to Alice, there was passion that someone who had the need to be protective of who he stood next too. She flipped him off turning around to one of the food bags expecting William to introduce himself but he didn't. He was still rigid looking John in the eye daring the older man to look away just as Alice had when she arrived.

"Will?" Alice had grabbed a thing of fries and turned around only to notice the way William was standing, she appreciated it but it had startled her. "Here, take these." Alice handed the fries to Harry before stepping back to William. She linked their hands tugging on his hand a little bit, he glanced at her but was still standing fairly protectively. Harry wondered if William was protecting both Kitten and Alice or if it was simply Alice. "This is William..."

"The one you told Kitten about?" Harry asked unable to help himself and Alice blushed and nodded. "It's a pleasure to meet you William, I'm Harry or as your girlfriend refers to me...pup." He smiled and that did finally cause William stance to fall a bit a soft blush coming across his cheeks to match Alice's at the word 'girlfriend' leaving his lips. "Kitten's going to be so excited to meet you when she wakes up, sorry we are both...a bit tired."

"You know how I told you we had to smash my phone because my parents were tracking it?" William nodded remembering the event where he'd met up with the girl his mother had always promised would come back into his life. How she'd been panicked when she'd realized she was being tracked and immediately smashed her phone into a million pieces and he'd helped her destroy it.

"Proper wrecked it." William hummed. "Here you go by the way, Dan is the one who brought the food...he didn't want to overwhelm your Kitten plus Lottie needed his help at the house." Alice smiled taking the phone from William' hands and putting it into her pocket.

"Well I couldn't get in contact with her and let her know I'd be here, there's a chance a text like that can be tracked or even a phone call like that can be traced." Alice said rubbing her eyes with her free hand and Harry noticed they were beginning to water. William seemed to hear the very subtle sound of tears as he turned and pulled Alice into his arms rubbing her back. "I told you what could happen if my parents found out and alerted her parents about where she was."

"And I promised you I wouldn't let any one touch you or her ever again." William said firmly and Harry hummed agreeing just as firmly.

"I had a few days where I couldn't get to any kind of phone and let them know I was on my way and that I was ok...they've been up for...how long again?" Alice asked looking at Harry because he hadn't exactly given her a time length. William looked up at Harry expectantly, harry just hummed and shrugged.

"At least three days." John tattled like a child and Anne smacked her husband's arm in frustration with him, She had assumed there was a good reason Harry had left out how long it had been exactly.

"That's...the entire time I was absent from a phone. You've been awake for three days?" Alice choked a bit. "Or...Or is it just her that's been up?" She was unsure what she wanted the answer to be. Harry offered her somewhat of an unsure smile.

"Both of us, I couldn't sleep knowing you were out there alone. Though I'm glad you weren't alone, that's something Kitten will find comfort in too." Harry was some what slow but deliberate at giving her the information as he watched emotion play over her face before she stuffed it into William' shirt trying to hide her emotions. "It's alright Alice, you weren't the one haunting her dreams which I'm sure contributed to her refusal to sleep. She's also had to put up with John and he's not so 'reassuring'" He grunted.

"I hate him," Alice gripped William' shirt as she let out a muffled noise of protest and Harry simply agreed though she couldn't see his nod because she was hiding in William' shirt. "He scares her, she's terrified he's going to turn her into her parents for the money."

"Absolutely not." William hissed venomously holding Alice tighter.

"Yeah, that's what I've been saying. If it's any comfort I think he's scared of you Alice," Harry hummed as he popped a few fries into his mouth enjoying the warm food in his mouth. He hadn't been eating much unless Kitten was up to eat with him. He slept when she slept if she slept, his worry for her often preoccupied him from doing things such as eating when she wasn't. William let out a small laugh and Alice sniffled.

"Why would he even want to do such a thing?" William asked trying to get a handle on his irritation and not wake up the young sick girl on the bed.

"She told us that she came from money." Gemma said slowly looking over the people in the room. "None of us know who her parents really are but she's scared to death he'll find out and try and return her to them." She explained to William who was quickly growing red in anger at the information he was provided. He knew a little of the abuse Kitten had suffered and who her parents were. Alice had shared what she felt was necessary to help protect Kitten.

"You really didn't tell them?" Alice pulled away looking at Harry mildly surprised. Learning that kind of information would be enough for any teenager to be overwhelmed with getting involved. "Not even your mum?" Harry tossed some more fries into his mouth looking at Alice and shaking his head.

"Nope, wouldn't risk it. Who and where she came from isn't important to her life now," Harry said simply smiling over at his mom who was smiling as well. "Mum doesn't want to know anything that Kitten isn't ready to talk about." He hummed. William nodded looking over at the woman who was so soft and the love he could feel radiating off her reminded him of his own mother who had passed away from cancer not too long ago.

"I don't even know what to say, I'm impressed. It's hard to keep that kind of information from pushy parents...."Alice looked towards John as she stayed near William but not pulling away from him completely. He gently rubbed her back. Harry shook his head looking down at Kitten.

"It's not hard for me. I don't want anything to happen to her, ever." He leaned his head against Kitten's for a moment. He already felt like she was his world, his entire world and heart. "You two are far too important to ever let that kind of information slip." Alice was tearing up again because he'd included her in that statement and she'd never been cared for before it was such a strange concept for her. One she was learning that it was ok to feel overwhelmed by.

"When I first talked to you, I knew you were good but I had no idea just how good you are. I can't even begin to put into words how much I appreciate you pup." Alice admitted trying not to let it be obvious she was teared up. Harry smiled at her and William rewarded him with a smile as well. "Eat so you can get some sleep too I'm sure the do-"


	16. Chapter 16

"She's asleep," Harry nodded as if Alice needed confirmation. "If I hadn't promised her you would eat I would tell you to go back to sleep too." she scolded Harry but he simply stuck his tongue out at her as if that was going to stop her from caring about how he was taken care of.

"Whatever," Harry drawled. "Whose your friend?" he asked feeling like he already had a good idea about who this person was. He could tell from the way that the boy stood next to Alice, there was passion that someone who had the need to be protective of who he stood next too. She flipped him off turning around to one of the food bags expecting William to introduce himself but he didn't. He was still rigid looking John in the eye daring the older man to look away just as Alice had when she arrived.

"Will?" Alice had grabbed a thing of fries and turned around only to notice the way William was standing, she appreciated it but it had startled her. "Here, take these." Alice handed the fries to Harry before stepping back to William. She linked their hands tugging on his hand a little bit, he glanced at her but was still standing fairly protectively. Harry wondered if William was protecting both Kitten and Alice or if it was simply Alice. "This is William..."

"The one you told Kitten about?" Harry asked unable to help himself and Alice blushed and nodded. "It's a pleasure to meet you William, I'm Harry or as your girlfriend refers to me...pup." He smiled and that did finally cause William stance to fall a bit a soft blush coming across his cheeks to match Alice's at the word 'girlfriend' leaving his lips. "Kitten's going to be so excited to meet you when she wakes up, sorry we are both...a bit tired."

"You know how I told you we had to smash my phone because my parents were tracking it?" William nodded remembering the event where he'd met up with the girl his mother had always promised would come back into his life. How she'd been panicked when she'd realized she was being tracked and immediately smashed her phone into a million pieces and he'd helped her destroy it.

"Proper wrecked it." William hummed. "Here you go by the way, Dan is the one who brought the food...he didn't want to overwhelm your Kitten plus Lottie needed his help at the house." Alice smiled taking the phone from William' hands and putting it into her pocket.

"Well I couldn't get in contact with her and let her know I'd be here, there's a chance a text like that can be tracked or even a phone call like that can be traced." Alice said rubbing her eyes with her free hand and Harry noticed they were beginning to water. William seemed to hear the very subtle sound of tears as he turned and pulled Alice into his arms rubbing her back. "I told you what could happen if my parents found out and alerted her parents about where she was."

"And I promised you I wouldn't let any one touch you or her ever again." William said firmly and Harry hummed agreeing just as firmly.

"I had a few days where I couldn't get to any kind of phone and let them know I was on my way and that I was ok...they've been up for...how long again?" Alice asked looking at Harry because he hadn't exactly given her a time length. William looked up at Harry expectantly, harry just hummed and shrugged.

"At least three days." John tattled like a child and Anne smacked her husband's arm in frustration with him, She had assumed there was a good reason Harry had left out how long it had been exactly.

"That's...the entire time I was absent from a phone. You've been awake for three days?" Alice choked a bit. "Or...Or is it just her that's been up?" She was unsure what she wanted the answer to be. Harry offered her somewhat of an unsure smile.

"Both of us, I couldn't sleep knowing you were out there alone. Though I'm glad you weren't alone, that's something Kitten will find comfort in too." Harry was some what slow but deliberate at giving her the information as he watched emotion play over her face before she stuffed it into William' shirt trying to hide her emotions. "It's alright Alice, you weren't the one haunting her dreams which I'm sure contributed to her refusal to sleep. She's also had to put up with John and he's not so 'reassuring'" He grunted.

"I hate him," Alice gripped William' shirt as she let out a muffled noise of protest and Harry simply agreed though she couldn't see his nod because she was hiding in William' shirt. "He scares her, she's terrified he's going to turn her into her parents for the money."

"Absolutely not." William hissed venomously holding Alice tighter.

"Yeah, that's what I've been saying. If it's any comfort I think he's scared of you Alice," Harry hummed as he popped a few fries into his mouth enjoying the warm food in his mouth. He hadn't been eating much unless Kitten was up to eat with him. He slept when she slept if she slept, his worry for her often preoccupied him from doing things such as eating when she wasn't. William let out a small laugh and Alice sniffled.

"Why would he even want to do such a thing?" William asked trying to get a handle on his irritation and not wake up the young sick girl on the bed.

"She told us that she came from money." Gemma said slowly looking over the people in the room. "None of us know who her parents really are but she's scared to death he'll find out and try and return her to them." She explained to William who was quickly growing red in anger at the information he was provided. He knew a little of the abuse Kitten had suffered and who her parents were. Alice had shared what she felt was necessary to help protect Kitten.

"You really didn't tell them?" Alice pulled away looking at Harry mildly surprised. Learning that kind of information would be enough for any teenager to be overwhelmed with getting involved. "Not even your mum?" Harry tossed some more fries into his mouth looking at Alice and shaking his head.

"Nope, wouldn't risk it. Who and where she came from isn't important to her life now," Harry said simply smiling over at his mom who was smiling as well. "Mum doesn't want to know anything that Kitten isn't ready to talk about." He hummed. William nodded looking over at the woman who was so soft and the love he could feel radiating off her reminded him of his own mother who had passed away from cancer not too long ago.

"I don't even know what to say, I'm impressed. It's hard to keep that kind of information from pushy parents...."Alice looked towards John as she stayed near William but not pulling away from him completely. He gently rubbed her back. Harry shook his head looking down at Kitten.

"It's not hard for me. I don't want anything to happen to her, ever." He leaned his head against Kitten's for a moment. He already felt like she was his world, his entire world and heart. "You two are far too important to ever let that kind of information slip." Alice was tearing up again because he'd included her in that statement and she'd never been cared for before it was such a strange concept for her. One she was learning that it was ok to feel overwhelmed by.

"When I first talked to you, I knew you were good but I had no idea just how good you are. I can't even begin to put into words how much I appreciate you pup." Alice admitted trying not to let it be obvious she was teared up. Harry smiled at her and William rewarded him with a smile as well. "Eat so you can get some sleep too I'm sure the do-"

"Is here," Doctor Sanders walked into the room smiling at the room full of people. Finding Kitten asleep was reassuring. He hadn't seen her sleep in days. "She's finally sleeping?" He looked to Harry.

"She is, I told you I could get her to sleep." Alice coughed the tears out of her eyes and looked at the doctor who just grinned and shook his head.

"Even with him in the room? fascinating. How did she respond to your boyfriend?" Doctor Sanders asked and Alice blushed again looking to William.

"She was fine, I'm not sure she was awake enough to understand that there was someone else in the room. His energy is similar to mine so," Alice shrugged and the doctor nodded looking at William before looking towards the bed.

"What do you need Dr. Sanders?" Anne asked kindly not sure why he'd come into the room. Not upset or anything of the sort but just curious.


	17. Chapter 17

"Well, I'm sure Miss. Alice has told you I've been discussing getting Kitten discharged. I believe the hospital setting is becoming too much stress on her." Doctor sanders explained as he walked over to the monitors and checking some things writing them down. He set his pad down and reached over taking Harry's wrist in his hand.

It was something the doctor had begun doing a lot lately, he'd been checking Harry's vitals when he came in to check on Kitten. He knew Harry wasn't his patient or even admitted in the hospital or have anything wrong with him but he also knew the teenager was under just as much stress as Kitten. He took Harry's pulse and then checked his eyes and blood pressure. He frowned at the dark bags under Harry's eyes, he was aware that both teenagers were having trouble sleeping the last few days but that didn't stop him from worrying. After all he was a doctor.

"I think the hospital is starting to stress your son out as well." He wrote something down on his clipboard before looking at the fries Harry was eating and smiling slightly. "Sir," he turned towards Des who he'd talked to before about him taking Kitten in. "Would you be able to have your home ready by tomorrow afternoon? I'd like to discharge her tomorrow with of course some conditions such as agreeing to have home care nurse come in every few days and check on her and such." Doctor Sanders said softly. Des nodded eagerly.

"Her room is actually already ready in my home. I went home the other day and fixed it up, my son will be moving in with me as well and I was told their might be another visitor I was housing so I got my house in order for them." Des smiled towards Alice who had hidden her face and was trying not to let the fond tears in her eyes fall.

"Where do you live?" William asked a little anxiously. Alice had been staying with him and his family and she'd told him that wasn't a good long term solution but William hated the idea of her living away from him. "I mean...I just..."

"I'll get you the address, you are more than welcome to come and stay as you please." Des smiled at William easing the boy's anxiety quickly. John huffed and rolled his eyes.

"So what you're a charity house for troubled teens now?" John snarled. "I can see why you divorced him. Pathetic." Anne gaped at her husband and Gemma looked absolutely shocked. The doctor took in a sharp breath to tamp down his own emotions to remain professional. Alice flew off the handle, William had been so pissed he'd lost his grip on her completely so when she went flying across the room he hadn't been prepared.

"You worthless piece of shit!" Alice snarled shooting across the room. Harry groaned slightly as he fought with what he should do. Before anyone could do anything, Alice had punched John in the face. William and Harry both had to get up, it took Harry a little bit of work to get off the bed. The young teenager was quite the ball of fury, she was hard to catch. The doctor had dropped the clipboard in an attempt to help as well but he'd gotten shoved. So instead of continuing to try and fight with the teen he walked over to where Kitten was stress shaking but she wasn't waking up like he expected her too.

Anne had jumped out of the way not even going to defend her husband tears in her eyes at his words. She looked at Des who opened his arms for his once wife, they were still good friend. Their marriage hadn't ended in turmoil, it had simply ended because they'd found their love had changed. John was attempting to push back at the girl but William and Harry finally got a grip on her and started to pull her away but when John got up to shove her back Gemma got involved and suddenly no one knew what was happening. The doctor wasn't sure if he should call security or not.

"I hate you!" Alice screeched unable to control herself or really tell what was going on any more. She was on edge, she'd just escaped her own abusive home. She knew how much danger Kitten would be in if she was found. She couldn't help the way she was responding. Kitten's eyes flew open at the sound of Alice's distress.

"Alice, baby come on you gotta back up." William was trying to beg her. Kitten stirred on the bed and the doctor watched her in confusion, much to his disbelief she took a second to register what was happening before she was climbing off the bed. She didn't seem to be registering where she was. He quickly detatched the iv from the bags so when she climbed off the bed she didn't rip it out of her arm. She didn't stop to look at him, she was moving quickly at a pace she shouldn't be able to. He let out a worried noise as he watched her slip into the mess of limbs.

Kitten ducked in under Gemma's arms, she whirled around putting her back to John not caring if he tried to attack her. She then slipped under where William was trying to grab at Alice, he was shocked and a little panicked when his hands were forced from the grip he had on Alice's waist. Kitten put her arms around Alice and slipped under where Alice was swinging fists and where Harry was standing to try and slow any attack from his step father. Alice's eyes were wild as she looked at Kitten suddenly extremely confused.

"Hi." Kitten looked at her, tired eyes looking into the eyes of a friend she wouldn't be alive if she didn't have. Alice's eye brows drew together in confusion. "Ace, you're getting your knuckles all bloody." She gently gripped her friends wrist and brushed her thumb over the swelling knuckles, which had John's blood on them. Alice looked at her hand slowly the anger diffusing as confusion took over. Everyone stopped when Kitten had appeared in the middle of all of it. No one had even thought she was capable of such a thing, she was supposed to be in a hospital bed and all the sudden she was standing in the middle of the war zone that had started in her room.

"You should be laying down," It was almost instinctive for Alice to just turn off what she was doing to protect Kitten at all costs even when she felt like Kitten needed to be protected from herself.

"And you should be eating." Kitten challenged and Alice sighed at the same time she let out a small groan. Kitten offered a small smile to her, "You know I'm right."

"Yeah, I know you're right." Alice sighed. "I'm sorry." She looked at Kitten and then over to the others in the room. Harry had left Kitten's side only because His mother was upset and visibly so. Alice's heart broke at the look on Anne's face. "I just, I got angry...I'm sorry." She added and Kitten pulled her in gently.

"I don't mean to interrupt but how are you standing up?" The doctor asked finally making his presence known. Kitten looked away from Alice and her knees buckled, William caught her before she could fall it was as if making her away of the fact that her body shouldn't be physically capable of what it was doing caused a dysfunction of whatever she'd been operating on. Leading her body to stop responding the way it had been.

"You couldn't wait until we got her laid back down to ask her that? If she was functioning on some kind of adrenaline rush your question would throw it off. " Alice grunted at the doctor who wasn't even slightly offended at the tone she'd taken with him. the situation was extremely emotionally charged, he expected some snapping.

"I apologize, come on let's get you back on the bed." Doctor sanders said softly approaching the teens but Alice snarled unable to help herself. Harry still hadn't come back over and Alice wouldn't back down where she felt like Kitten was still in danger. "Alright, I'll stay over here. Mister Styles can you come speak to me while they are...taking their time?" He asked and Des nodded making his way over to the doctor. Alice looked up at William thankful he'd caught Kitten. Kitten tilted her head up to look at the strange boy who had caught her. She vaguely remembered seeing him and the vibe he had was familiar in a way.

"Hello," Kitten smiled lazily at William. "You must be William," William looked at her a little shocked she'd already decided who he was. He returned the smile but his was more hesitant and confused. "You eyes are as blue as Ace said they were." she added and Alice blushed letting out a quiet groan.

"Hello love, you must be Kitten." He teased as he adjusted his grip on her. He looked towards Harry who was having a hushed conversation with his mother. It took a second for him to register what Kitten had just said about his eyes and he let out a small laugh. "Oh? is that so?"

"Mhm, they look like ocean's. The bluest of blue, they are made for photographs. you know those photographs in magazines where all the colors are saturated? Only your eyes are real." She explained as if it was the most logical thing on the planet to tell someone you hardly knew that their eyes were made for photographs. "Blue is one of my favorite colors, like Harry's eyes are sometimes more blue then they are green like those ocean's near beaches those clear moving colors. Have you met my Harry yet?" she asked as Alice ducked in to help William get kitten back onto the bed. Kitten wasn't really aware of much of what was going on she was starting to become delirious from being in the hospital and being under such stress.

"I have, he's quite the guy!" William hummed as she laid back on the bed smiling and looking a little love sick. William couldn't help but smile at her in return, he caught her eyes as she looked around the room trying to process what had just happened.

"I want to go home." Kitten said after being quiet for a moment. She looked towards Alice who frowned, wanting nothing more than to give Kitten what she wanted at the moment. "I want to go home with Harry. I don't want to be in the hospital any more." He wondered how long she'd actually been in the hospital by this point. He wondered if they'd celebrated Christmas here in the hospital or if they'd had Christmas at all. He made a note in his brain to ask later because he wanted to get them both a gift if they hadn't had any kind of Christmas. Everyone deserved some kind of celebration.

"I can go see if the doctor is ok wit-" Alice was cut off by doctor Sanders and Des both clearing their throats.

"Alright everyone," Doctor sanders walked over to the bed where Kitten was sitting instead of laying down, she had been laying back for a second only too sit back up as soon as Alice was interrupted. "Here's the plan, I think it's time for you to get in a real bed." He let out a soft laugh as Kitten looked at her cot and then up at the doctor squinting at him. "By that I mean it's time to get you home, some place you can rest and have regular meals and maybe sit at a window every day. Not attached to any IVs or anything." she mad a small 'oh' noise.

"I've got my car and I'm assuming your dad can come get you or bring you stuff so that you can say at my place for a little while?" Des asked William and he nodded. "Then I'm ready to get you four kids home some place you don't have to worry about anything or stress that you aren't safe." He promised.

"Sound good?" The doctor turned back to Kitten who nodded a bit too quickly. "Alright I'm going to send in the nurse and finish the discharge instructions the rest I've talked to Mister Styles about. Then let's get you out of here." He patted Kitten's shoulder and she smiled at him moving around in the bed a bit excited she was going to get to leave even if she was still pretty weak and struggling to do simple things. No more hospitals, no more having to deal with the lights or sounds or the constant questioning from people she didn't know.

Harry had barely acknowledged what had been said before going back to talking quietly to his mother. He'd never seen her so upset and John didn't seem to be too apologetic, Gemma had joined the quiet conversation. Kitten looked over and took note of the conversation a pit forming in her stomach. She looked to Alice who had also noticed the quiet conversation but didn't assume it to be the same one Kitten was having though she always left room to be wrong. It helped her steady her own emotions if she didn't build up her trust in one out come.

The doctor left the room and a nurse came in unhooking Kitten from her IVs and making sure to talk to Des about things Kitten should be avoiding doing until it was okay-d by a doctor. The nurse had also brought in a pair of scrubs for her to change into. That was when Gemma came away from the conversation with her mom stopping the nurse. She pulled out a back pack that had some sweat pants and one of Harry's shirts in it. Kitten looked a bit cautiously at Gemma before taking the clothes and handing them to Alice. Alice climbed onto the bed with Kitten, easily helping her get dressed with out exposing her to any one in the room at the same time getting her hospital gown off. William was impressed at the skill between the two of hem.

Once she was dressed another nurse came in and handed a packet of paper to Des. She then moved towards the bed to help Kitten sit on the side of it before pushing in the wheelchair that would transport Kitten from the hospital to the car. Once Kitten was on the side of the bed she looked at Alice again glancing back at Harry who was simply hugging his mother now. Alice looked back as well.

"If he changes his mind, I'll take you to my home." William said softly able to pick up what both girls seemed to be feeling. Kitten looked at him his kindness bringing tears to her eyes. "I don't think he's going to change his mind but no matter what I'm in this. I promise." William held out his pinky finger and Kitten let out a quiet laugh wrapping her pinky with his pinky and Alice locked hers in as well. "come on let's get you into the wheelchair, I'd bet you'd like to get out of here and eat or take a good quality nap." he teased and she nodded.

"Thank you," Kitten nearly whispered. Alice ducked back in and eased Kitten from the bed and into the wheelchair. Once Kitten was sitting in the chair the two teenage girls had a moment. Alice ducked in and pressed her forehead against Kitten's.

"I love you Kitten and you did it. You survived." Alice said softly her own sentimental tears in her eyes as she grabbed one of Kitten's hands. Kitten returned the gesture by squeezing her friend's hand. "You're never going to have to be alone again. From here on out no matter what, in no form, will we ever be separated again." she promised.

"Any fight...we fight together." Kitten added and Alice hummed. It was a promise they made to each other over texts and phone calls all these years that if they ever made it to each other they would never fight alone ever again. "I always need you Ace, always."

"And I'll always need you. You're my only good influence." She teased after they made a quiet promise to each other. Kitten laughed and shook her head leaning back down against the wheelchair and took a deep breath not sure she wanted to look around and figure out what was going on with Harry and his mom any more. "Alright, we are set. Harry are you coming?" She looked back towards him.

"Yeah, absolutely." He hummed but he hesitated, a hesitation Kitten didn't get the chance to witness because Alice and Des had already begun to push Kitten out of the room in her wheelchair. William crossed his arms and waited as Harry said a few more things to his mother before grabbing up the backpack his sister had gotten clothes out of and slinging it over his shoulder. He looked at William, William gestured for him to leave the room first and after another moment squinting in confusion at the male Harry did.

Alice was humming quietly as she pushed Kitten down the hallway. She'd glanced back and looked at how far behind William and Harry were. If she hadn't trained her self to take note of things with out stuttering in any movement she made regardless of her feelings she would have tripped over her own feet. Harry kept running his fingers through his hair and William was staring at him and walking a step behind like he was expecting Harry to turn around and bolt. Harry didn't look frustrated with Kitten he just looked upset and he was. He was upset that his mother had been so upset and so hurt by his asshole of a step dad.

When it got to the car and they all loaded into it. Obviously making sure Kitten got in their first and most safely. Alice climbed in next to her and put her arms around her. Harry and William debated briefly over who would sit in back with Alice and Kitten and who would sit in front. William went with the front and Harry climbed into the back happy to be next to Kitten again. Though he noticed how tense she was and gently put his hand on her thigh. She looked down at it and then up at him.

"Did you change your mind?" She asked quietly though the words echoed in Harry's brain for a moment. She sounded so scared and vulnerable and he was confused as to what he'd changed his mind about, he looked to Alice for guidance. She didn't really give him much to work with, he glanced back down at Kitten and suddenly it clicked in his head.

"No, no not at all." His answer was quick. "Did I do something to make you think I had?" Harry asked rubbing his thumb across her thigh. Kitten didn't answer just looked down at his hand slowly putting hers on top of his. Alice was still watching him though and it was mildly rattling. Alice could scare anyone really, if she wanted to she could probably run an army of people to do her bidding through looks alone. She wasn't making a dirty disapproving face at Harry just one of observation and occasional. It was clear to him he had a lot more to learn about these two.

"So I know a lot about Alice and quite a bit about Kitten not much about you Harry. Why don't you tell me about yourself?" William took any conversation responsibility off Alice and Kitten. The two girls were now holding hands as they drove, Kitten's other hand still holding onto Harry's. Harry moved to rubbing his thumb over her knuckles in reassurance

"Um, well I turn 16...soon?" He questioned looking at his cell phone the date reading January 3rd. "Yeah soon until I'm finally the same age as Kitten. I want to pursue music instead of going to uni for stuff I don't really want to do." Des hummed clearly encouraging his son as he spoke about what he wanted to do with his life. "I'm really close to my mom and my sister, I work in a bakery sometimes." He continued. "I also go back to finish school soon which not looking forward to it at all." Kitten wanted to sigh or cry the idea of him being away from her for a whole school day was torture.

"I want to make music too, I worked at a toys r us store. But I got canned because I fooled around to much with the toys. I'm a bit of a trouble maker." Alice giggled when William brought up his job and why he'd been fired. She hadn't been with him when it happened but it was still funny to her that he had caused so much trouble he'd been fired. "Oh and I turned 17 on Christmas!"

"Sick! You have your birthday on Christmas...I don't remember Christmas.." He frowned looking down at Kitten who had started to doze off. Alice was awake but it looked like her eyes were starting to droop as well. He wondered what day Christmas was. "I've been in the hospital with her, days all kind of blurred together."

"John tried to get your mother and I to make you leave to have a family Christmas dinner. We refused. We weren't about to force you away from her side to have a holiday we can celebrate later. Plus when you woke up the day you and Kitten weren't really in a place to celebrate anything. Just like new years day. No point." Des told him looking into the mirror at the back seat. "It's been awhile at the hospital you guys needed to be left with out any expectations or dates."

"You sound like my step dad when I told him about Alice. Then when he met her he was absolutely in love with her." William grinned as he looked back at his girlfriend. She stuck her tongue out shaking her head at her boyfriend in return. "I don't know if Alice told you but her and I met previously to me and her meeting up almost a week ago?" Des hummed and Harry nodded.

"Yeah, well she sort of did. Kitten and her were discussing love and Alice brought you up. " Harry added getting a very distinct look from Alice who's cheeks were pink. "Sorry was that a secret?" Alice simply huffed and flipped him off.

"Well," William couldn't help the dopey feeling in his body. "I've always been in love with her. It just took me a bit to find her and get her to Kitten. I haven't dated or even looked at another girl the same way since I met her."

"You're such a sap." Alice teased.

"I might be." William smiled brightly at her.

"You're lucky I love your sappy self." She giggled and William just kept his smile towards her. "It doesn't hurt your case that you love Kitten too." William rolled his eyes.

"I love Kitten like a sister. I love you like a lover." William spoke as if that sentence made any sense at all. "That could be a good song lyric." Alice shook her head taking her turn to roll her eyes.

"Dork," Alice hummed setting her head on Kitten's shoulder. Kitten leaned towards Alice still clinging to Harry's hand. "Mister Styles are you sure you're ok housing me?" Des pulled up to the house and looked into the back seat. He pulled a face looking at the all too skinny teenage girls in his back seat. Both of them were unsure of themselves having been rejected and out casted by the people that were supposed to raise and love them. Including their fathers who had been so hard on them in such deep unfairness.

“of course I am sure,” Des put the car in park and took the keys out before opening his door. He opened the door looking at the gaggle of teenagers he had in the back. Two boys, one whom he didnt know but that was kind and protective of the two girls and one he knew very well who might just kill for the teenage girls in the car. “I know your parents let you down Alice but I promise that I will do my best to step in where they let you down.” he hummed helping her climb out of the car helping William out next. Kitten was steal asleep on Harry's shoulder.


End file.
